Turn About is Fair Play
by Personel Change
Summary: Slappy returns to his ex-slave in his time of need, but will she help him or did he just make a huge mistake?
1. Chapter 1

An Amy x Slappy fiction.

Amy Kramer walked along the roadside in the fading sunset. Her dark bronze hair that had escaped her long braid tickled her face as the evening traffic 'whoosed' past her. She adjusted the dirty mesh sack of softball equipment over her right shoulder then paused as an eighteen wheeler roared by. Dust and sun parched leaves flurried around her. Amy squinted her eyes and grunted in annoyance. She wiped away some minute debris from her eyes then reached in her jean pocket to retrieve a scrappy looking phone. The broken screen still responded to touch most of the time, but still resulted in awkward texts now and then.

"I'm headed home,mom. Do yo want me start the pissa?" Amy texted idly. The Z,U,and B buttons never worked anymore.

She closed the screen and stuffed her hand-me-down back in her pocket, then headed back down the road in her kleets. Amy kicked at the newly fallen leaves as she trudged closer to her neighborhood. School started three weeks ago, but fall was just really kicking in. It was around this time almost six years ago that she had gotten that evil dummy. She still thought about the incident now and then,but had for the most part moved him out of her mind. Having a nice dummy like Dennis around really helped. Dennis was the family secret.

As the sun dipped lower in the sky, cool baby's breaths of air puffed against the back of her neck and sweated brow. She smiled into the cool kisses before they melted away in the last lazy breezes of summer. Amy breathed deep and leaned her head back. She shut her eyes walked the path she had walked hundreds of times before.

The crickets were tuning up as she walked up her driveway. She tossed her softball gear haphazardly in the little space between the house and the garage, making a loud clatter when they landed. She hustled up the walkway, but froze in her tracks when she reached the porch.

"No way." she said incredulously.

There was a crumpled little form dressed to the nines collapsed at her front door. Amy just stood there, dumbstruck. The crickets rosened up their bows as she pondered what to do.

It was Slappy.

She could tell that without looking at his creepy little face. She had thought he was dead for good. Well, he did kinda look like it now.

Amy sneered, "Is this some kind of bad joke...?"she said aloud taking a tentative step forward.

Slappy shifted his legs and rolled his head to his right shoulder.

"Gah!" Amy yelped in surprise and took two steps back.

He cracked open his left eye, his good eye, and looked at Amy. "Long time no see..."

She stared at him wide eyed and dumbstruck. She had no idea what to do. Nothing came to mind for a few stunned moments, then a hundred things raced through her mind at once. Amy glared at him and shrugged. "Why...what..." her mouth was starting to go dry,"..how are you still..."she shifted on her feet,"...didn't we kill you?" she asked finally.

"Not completely."he sighed tiredly.

Amy crossed her arms nervously and averted her gaze from him with a huff. "What do you want? Why did you come back?"she asked hurriedly.

"Straight to business,eh?"he said as he shakily rubbed his injured eye. "Alright, here it is,slave; I was double crossed. My jack-ass of a brother stole everything I have."

"Everything you 'had', you mean? If he stole all your stuff, then it isn't yours anymore." Amy interjected bluntly.

Slappy grimaced as deeply as his carved visage could at her."Yes. If you want to be a bitch about it."

Amy rolled her eyes at the dirty name and put her hands on her hips. "I'd take 'bitch' over 'slave' any day of the week, asshole."

Slappy glared harder at her. "Can we stay on the subject please, thunder thighs?"

"THUNDER THIGHS!?"Amy shrieked.

Slappy didn't pay attention to her and continued his tale. "When I say everything, I mean everything. My home,my stuff,my money,and even my powers.."he groaned miserably. He stared down at his battered body with a real expression of depression.

Amy chewed on the inside of her lip and looked at him sceptically,"Wait..if he stole all your powers,then how are you still alive?"

Slappy sighed then looked back up at her,"The jerk stole my powers, not my soul."

Amy tilted her head, "You have a soul?" she blurted out.

"Yes."Slappy responded dead pan.

They both went silent for a minute or so, just assessing one another.

Amy sighed then relaxed her posture. "So...what do you want me to do about it?"she asked while scratching her tummy.

"I've hit rock bottom! I'm asking you to help me!"he shouted impatiently.

Amy looked at him confused. "You want me," she said pointing at herself,".. to help you?"

Slappy rolled his eye,"Who's the dummy here anyway? Yeah, that's what I'm saying, slave."

"Amy."she stated correcting him.

"Whatever! Just help me already!"Slappy barked in frustration and exhaustion.

Before Amy could snap back at him the phone in her pocket chimed. She took it out and read the message. Amy tossed her head back and groaned, then took her house keys out of her pocket. "I have to make dinner tonight."she explained. "I'm already behind because of you."

Slappy blinked his one eye slowly at her. "What is it with humans and eating anyway? You eat, you crap, you eat again. What kind of boring, useless set up is that?"Slappy asked.

Amy grunted then used her keys to open the front door."First off, it's only boring if you're doing it wrong."she said stepping over Slappy and into her home."Secondly, eating is essential to life so, it's very not useless." Amy disarmed the security alarm and switched on a light inside.

"I don't have to eat."Slappy stated absentmindedly after her.

She stared at him in deep thought while she worked her kleets off to put in the mud bin. A mischievous smile creeped across her face. "Hmmmm...ha ha." Amy had an idea. "You know what, Slappy? You can stay."she said grinning ear to ear.

Slappy looked at her, surprised.

Amy undid her braid and fluffed her long dark brown hair with her hands. "You can stay, if you promise to be my slave."


	2. Chapter 2

Amy scooped her arms under Slappy's armpits and hefted him up from the doorway. She drug him into the living room,"Boy, did you let yourself go! You're as heavy a log!"Amy grumbled. She dropped him down then rubbed the small of her back.

"Hey!"he said in warning tone and glared. "You can thank my brother for that. He tossed me into the Black Lagoon." He scowled fiercely and pointed a wooden finger at his feet that were mostly covered with clumps of light grey stone."Although, not before giving me a new pair of concrete shoes!"he said with utter disdain.

Amy made a poor attempt to hold back a snicker.

Slappy glared at her, he didn't think it was funny."You wouldn't think it's so funny if it happened to you."

Amy didn't care. She gave the dummy a sarcastic look and stepped around him to shut the front door."You know,I'm not the type of person to tell somebody that it 'serves them right' or 'they got what was coming to them'-" she said then pulled a flat head screwdriver from the side table drawer beside a grey recliner. She sat down beside his feet and set the nearest one in her lap and pointed the screwdriver at him. "But if I was,"she continued looking him in the eyes," that is exactly what I'd say."

Slappy couldn't think of a witty retort. All he could do was to stare at her with contempt.

"Now hold still,"she warned him,"and don't kick me either."

"Humph!"Slappy turned his head away from her and pouted.

Amy spent the next ten minutes stabbing and prying cement clumps off his wooden shoes. Of course Slappy found it amusing any time she accidentally poked herself or a fragment hit her in the face.

"Ugh, okay the rest will just wear off in time."she said wiping the sweat from her brow. Amy collected the concrete bits and put them in her shirt. She hopped up and walked off to throw it all in the trash. "Hey, when did you get a body frame anyway..?"Amy called back distantly from the other room.

Slappy tested his legs,lifting them up and down while she was gone. It was much better, even if she had gouged him up more. Terrible ex-slave. He groaned miserably and stood up. Why did he still feel heavy? He looked at his hands. "Yuck.."he said turning them over. Maybe his ex wasn't too far off with that weight comment.

Amy paused in the doorway between the foyer and kitchen. She watched Slappy quietly inspecting his damaged condition.  
She found it odd how she didn't find it odd. Maybe it was because she had gotten used to Dennis that she wasn't flipping out now.  
Slappy was an evil living dummy,after all. He had been a real bastard before,too.  
Although, watching him act almost human now was somewhat reassuring.

"What's the matter?"she asked.

Slappy glanced at her, then back at his hands,"I'm bloated."

Amy tried picking him up again but had trouble. "Yeah,you could stand to lose a little more weight."

Slappy took his jacket off and threw it back to a surprised Amy, who caught it,"I'll take your word for it, you look like you'd know all about bloating and weight gain."

Amy frowned at him. She took a breath to yell at him but gagged instead. "Bleh! What is that smell!?"

Slappy turned around and tilted his head."Maybe you're just smelling your own bottom lip?"

Amy sniffed the jacket and nearly doubled over."Jesus christ monkey balls, that's awful!"she exclaimed holding it at arm's length. "YOU'RE the one that stinks,Slappy!" Amy sniffed the spots where she had come in contact with him,"Oh great, I smell like it too!" Amy quickly took off her socks and wondered why she didn't notice the stench before.

"I hate to break it to you, but you didn't smell that great to begin with either,"he said with an eye roll. "Like a hairy dirt ball eating a tuna sandwich."he gave an involuntary shudder. He crossed his arms,"And what do you expect for someone to smell like after being at the bottom of the Black Lagoon for over a week?"

Amy pulled her black and orange baseball shirt over her head,"What the hell is in the Black Lagoon? We smell like a corpse!"Amy was joking but didn't think it was funny when she glanced at Slappy.

He grinned devilishly at her and shrugged.

Amy looked mortified and practically tore her pants off."Oh my god, gross! Get those filthy clothes off right now!"

Slappy's eye widened then he chuckled nervously, "You gotta' buy me a drink first."

Amy wasn't in the mood. She knocked his ass over and ripped his shirt off despite his loud protests.

"Hey! Hey! Watch the buttons!"he yelled frenzied and trying to get her off him.

"Come on,don't be a prude! Off with your pants!"she yelled wrestling him for the nasally offending garment.

"I'll be naked!"he shrieked holding onto the waistband of a silly looking pair of dummy sized boxers as she yanked his pants away.

"It's not like you have anything to be modest about,Slappy,"she said,habitually folding the pants over her arm. Amy snorted a laugh when she looked back at him. He was sprawled out on the floor with those skinny wooden limbs sticking out from his Pinocchio looking body in those toddler sized boxers. "You look ridiculous without clothes."she snorted.

Slappy sat cross legged and leered at her,"Well,you look like a boy! Aren't women supposed to have breasts,bean pole?"

Amy frowned and blushed furiously,"Shut up! Breasts aren't everything!"she shouted crossing her arms over her white bra.

Slappy smirked,"For you they're nothing."

"Oh shut up and let's get in the shower already!"she yelled before dragging him by the arm into the guest bathroom.

"Wait a minute-you aren't serious!"Slappy protested but Amy had already tossed him inside and closed and locked the bathroom door. He yelled again when she shoved all their clothes in a trash bag from under the sink.

"What are you doing? That's my best suit!"he cried.

"Well, now it's your trashiest one."she stated tying off the top of the plastic bag tightly. Amy placed the bag under the sink then turned the water on in the tiled walk-in shower. She tested the temperature of the water with her hand until it was to a soothingly warm temerature. She looked back at him over her shoulder,"Do I have to drag you in here,too?"she asked.

"NEWS FLASH:I'M MADE OF WOOD. WATER IS BAD FOR ME."he said leaning against the bathroom door obviously irritated with his skinny arms folded.

"THIS JUST IN: I NEED TO WASH AWAY THE DYSENTERY. ALSO, BREAKING NEWS, I DON'T GIVE A CRAP."Amy said unhooking her bra.

Slappy quickly looked down at the floor and used one hand to block his view.

Boy was she a pain in his knothole.

Slappy groaned and sighed tiredly. He was too tired for this. "Fine, I just want this over with." He followed the floor as he trudged into the shower. He grumbled obscenities when he felt the hot water hit him. He located his ex-slaves feet and turned in the opposite direction. Slappy listened to the slick noises Amy made as she washed. He noticed as soap bubbles drifted past his shoe-feet.

'That does look really dumb',he thought to himself.

Why not just make feet? He had hands,why give him shoes he could never take off? Then he noticed where Amy had been hacking away with the screwdriver earlier. There was a crack at the ankle. It looked like he could peel the black part off...

Amy washed her long dark hair thoroughly and scrubbed her body aggressively with a soapy wash rag.

She glanced down at Slappy.

She didn't have to tell Slappy not to look at her. How nice. Maybe that gentlemanly tux wasn't all for show after all.

Or he didn't like women.

"Hey, what do you know? I've got feet. The shoes come off..."Slappy said sitting down in front of the drain flexing his little wooden toes with fascination.

"Huh,well look at that."Amy responded looking over his shoulder. "What does it feel like standing on them?"she asked. She smirked impishly when he stood up to try it out.

"Different."he said sloshing his toes through some accumulated water.

"Well, that's nice." she said before abruptly yanking his boxers down.

Slappy shrieked and covered his front for some reason. "What the hell,woman!?"

Amy couldn't contain her amusement,"Ha,ha, you have a butt-crack."

"What's wrong with you?!"he shouted then turned to glare at her. Amy was at eye level with him. Slappy jumped in surprise.

Amy smiled at him then started scrubbing him down with a soapy rag. Despite his cries and struggling,he was pretty much just a doll now without his powers. She easily overpowered him. After what seemed like hours to him, she suddenly stopped.

"You have to scrub your own..umm,whatever you have."Amy said handing him the rag over his shoulder.

He snatched it from her viciously,"I could have scrubbed all of me myself, you pervert!"

Amy rinsed her hands in the shower stream,"Whatever. I'm sorry, I guess."she said then stepped out of the shower.

Slappy grumbled and scrubbed himself in fear she'd change her mind if he didn't. He had been undressed by humans before, but never after they knew he was alive. If her could blush, he would.  
Only thinking of the humiliating things he'd do to her for revenge, after he got his powers back, was soothing to his deeply wounded pride. Finally, he scrubbed his feet last, then stood under the cascade to rinse. His eye drifted closed and he relaxed for a moment. The hot water was actually quiet comforting.

Slappy lost track of time until Amy knocked on the shower door. The shower glass was too fogged to see through but she waved at him and gestured to a chair outside the shower door."Slappy,there's a towel out here for you and a change of clothes. Before you ask,they're Dennis' clothes so they should fit."

"Dennis? That weenie? I don't want to wear his depressing clothing!"he sourly complained. "I want my suit back!"

"Hey, I made these clothes you dingus! I put a lot of effort into them."Amy nagged. She stalked out of the bathroom and called over her shoulder to him before she left,"I gotta make dinner!"

Slappy waited until he heard the door shut before coming out. "That idiot seriously trusts me to be alone in her house? I ought to burn it down. "He wrapped up in the towel and knocked water out of his ears. He examined the alleged 'clothing' she had brought him.

"Jeans?"he groaned at the common garment. Slappy then picked up a ball of black socks. "Wool. At least that's nice. As long as they fit." Peeking out from under the jeans was a pair of crimson underwear which he inspected and decided were cotton. It took him a minute to realize the shirt was hanging on the back of the chair with a little black undershirt draped over it. He took down the wire hanger and sneered at it in disgust. The shirt was fine. A charcoal grey ,collared,button up shirt that was free of wrinkles with black buttons.

His reproach was for the hanger. He removed the shirt then flung the hanger away. He held the linen shirt in his hands and examined the stitching. _"Did Amy really make these..?"_ he wondered.  
Maybe he shouldn't have given up on her as a slave after all. He had always wanted his own tailor. "I guess she's good for something after all."he mused aloud.

Slappy dried off quickly. He didn't like the way his body looked without his suit and dressed just as quickly, but left the socks for last. Amy had practically flooded the bathroom floor when she got out. He used the chair to climb onto the sink and cleared the fog off the glass with his towel.

"Not bad..."he said looking at his reflection,"..but it still isn't a suit!" he hissed.

The clothes were a little tight, but he took solace in knowing that once he dried out and the bloating was gone it would fit better. He got closer to the glass and looked at all his cosmetic injuries as well.

"That son of a birch.."he growled. His other eye had started working again,so that was a bit soothing, but not nearly enough. "I'll pour termites in his ears then burn him a the stake the next time that lousy, grinning, red fox crosses my path!"he yelled with balled up fists of tiny rage. He angrily threw his towel to the floor and cleaned up all the water. He flung the towel over the toilet to dry before exiting.

Slappy leaned against the door frame for balance. "Amy!"he called into the hallway as he put on the soft woolen socks.

"What? I'm in the kitchen!"she yelled back.

He stalked down the hall after her voice.

Being back here after all this time felt a little bizarre, he thought, as he traveled the familiar floors.  
The house was different, though.  
They had obviously remodeled since his premature exit, but it still held much of the same feeling.  
Sort of a haunting feeling.  
A pleasant haunting,mind you.  
It disgusted him.

He followed her voice and found her in the kitchen, which showed the most change. She was chopping vegetables while some dough was rising in the lit microwave.

"Hey."she said to Slappy as he walked up."You look nice."

He shrugged not sure how to respond to a sincere compliment. "It'll do for now."

Amy smirked at him. She knew that was a word of approval, if he ever gave any. "Thank you."she said then transferred her sliced bell peppers into a bowl and turned around to check on the pizza dough. "Hey,Slappy. Could you get out the marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese out for me?"

"No."he replied.

"Is that anyway to talk to your new master?"she asked smirking while she removed the dough from the microwave.

"No magic words. No slave."he said with a yawn.

"Darn it, don't yawn, Slappy."Amy yawned,"Don't you know they're contagious?"

Slappy opened the fridge and looked around for the sauce."What does the sauce look like?"

Amy was so shocked he was helping, she couldn't speak for a few seconds. "Uhhh...it's red with green bits of oregano in it."

Slappy found a mason jar full of what looked like her description. "What's an oregano?"he asked with a turned up nose,taking the jar from the door where it was just in his reach. Then he made a lucky guess with the cheese and brought them over to her.

Amy took them gratefully and cautiously, then gestured to a bar stool. "Sit down. Let's talk."

Slappy groaned,but climbed into a wooden seat anyway. He leaned back and relaxed. He hadn't felt this tired in a very long time.

"So,"Amy started as she began kneading the dough on the floured counter,"..what have you been doing all this time? You know,since you weren't off somewhere being dead after all."

"It's a long story. I'm too tired to go over it right now,slave."he said rubbing his eyes.

Amy sighed then grabbed a little carton of baby bella mushrooms and a sharp knife. She put them on a cutting board in front of Slappy.

He stared at her,questioning.

"I'm not a slave right now either,remember?"she stared back at him a moment, a smile dancing at the corners of her mouth. She turned away and split the dough to start forming out the pizza crusts.

"For now.."he said cryptically. Slappy glared at her back then picked up the knife,turning it over in his oddly deft wooden hands."I think there's somethin' wrong with me."he stated with genuine worry.

Amy glanced back at him.

"My first instinct is to cut these damn mushrooms, and not to stab you repeatedly."he said with no small amount of chagrin.

Amy grinned apprehensively."Well,maybe you're just too tired?"she offered.

He blinked slowly at her then started slicing the damn mushrooms.

* * *

3


	3. Chapter 3

They spent the next ten minutes in silence just making pizza.

As Amy was slipping her creations in the two wall ovens there was a simultaneous clatter at the front door and the sound of a garage door going up. Slappy looked at her as if to ask if he should hide. Amy just shrugged in a way that said she didn't give a crap if they knew or not.

"We're home!"Sara called as she walked in through the front door. She held the door open for a short, over dressed figure who was laden down with what had to be all Sara's shopping bags.

Amy grinned. _She was about to really enjoy this._

She leaned over the counter across from Slappy.

Slappy he smug grin painted across her face. "You went to the mall again,eh sis?"

Sara closed the door and huffed an annoyed sigh,"Yeah,so? You know,it might come as a shock to you, but it's what most normal teenagers do with their friends on friday afternoons,Amy."she said while resetting the house alarm. Dennis had already scuttled off to put Sara's bags in her room when she turned around with her hand on her hip to give Amy a snide look."But you don't have any-"Sara stopped and stared at Slappy. Her mouth hung open mid sentence as she tried to discern if her eyes were deceiving her. She looked at Amy,who just grinned and gave a little shrug. "No,that's not.."Sara said feeling queasy from the panic clawing at the bottom of her stomach.

Looking just as amused as Amy,Slappy turned suddenly and smiled at Sara,"Hello, Sara."he said sounding quite like a certain Anthony Hopkins character.

Sara flipped out. She started screaming and pointing angrily at Amy,"OH MY FREAKING GOD,AMY! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT THING DOING BACK HERE!?"

"Nice to see you again,too princess."Slappy said crossing his arms and legs in his arrogant manner.

Sara shrieked again and held her keys in her hand defensively,placing a key between each knuckle like some kind of automotive wolverine. "Oh my god! What the hell,Amy!?"

Dennis hurried into the living room and up to Sara."What's wrong?"he said peeling off an over sized scarf from around his face and tossing his hat on the couch. Even though it looked ridiculous, Sara crouched down and hid behind Dennis.

"Sara.."he said gently gripping her keyless hand on his shoulder trying to soothe her.

"It's him!"Sara hissed like a cat to Dennis.

Dennis' expression turned dark and gripped Sara's had tighter."Slappy,"he said with disgust,like the name tasted foul in his mouth,"what sewer did you crawl back out of?"

Slappy returned Dennis' look of disgust and sneered back at him.

"The Black Lagoon,"Amy said taking off her alligator shaped oven mitts,"So, I lent him a set of your clothes. You know, the ones you've never worn? Even though I spent an extended amount of time making them."Amy gave a quick huff and looked at the oven timer," By the way, the pizzas will be ready in about fifteen,so you two should wash up."

Sara was gobsmacked."Why are you acting like this is normal!? This is not some old friend! It's Slappy! Are you insane?"Sara yelled in a panic,"You didn't bring him here on purpose did you?! You've done some pretty outrageous things lately Amy, but this really takes the cake. You're psycho!"

Amy stared at her sister with a look of solemn indifference and jaw clenched.

The door to the garage opened.

"MOM! DADDY!"Sara shrieked and dashed down the hall leaving Dennis behind.

Amy rolled her eyes and sighed gruffly. She started cleaning up the mess she'd made in the kitchen. This wasn't amusing anymore.

Dennis and Slappy continued to glare at each other.

"Amy,sweetheart..?"a masculine voice carried from down the hall. Amy's father tentatively stepped into the kitchen through the arched doorway behind her. "Honey, your sister says you have,um..company?"he asked and glanced around.

Slappy waved at him from the counter,"What's up,Chuck?"

Amy's father flinched at the sight of the dummy. He was never going to get used to seeing living dolls. Mr. Kramer instinctively widen his stance and crossed his arms. He gave Amy a long suffering and annoyed look from behind his thick glasses. "That's the one that tried to murder us in our sleep,isn't it?"

"Yup."Amy said taking her apron off.

"Wait just a minute."Slappy said holding up a hand,"I wasn't going to kill anybody. I was just going to smack you around a bit."

"See dad,he's not homicidal. He's just violent."Amy said dismissively.

"AMY..."her father said gruffly."May I speak with you in the other room?" Amy sighed dramatically and walked towards the hall.

"Dennis,could keep an eye on that guy for me,please?"Amy's father said before following his daughter out of the kitchen.

Dennis moved closer to Slappy,"I won't let him out of my sight, Mr. Kramer."

Slappy was starting to get a headache. He leaned onto the counter and rested his chin in his hand, then glanced at his chaperone,"So, have you heard any good jokes lately?"

* * *

It was like walking into a den of lions. Amy stepped into the family room where her tall, lovely,and talented older sister,her aspiring director and straight A student little brother, and her long-suffering martyrs of parents all glowered at her in a circle.

"Amy, would you care to explain?"he father asked wearily.

Amy shrugged,"No,but I guess I have to since the inquisition is in town."

"Amy.."her mother groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"He just needs a place to stay until he gets back on his creepy little feet."Amy said looking down at her pink and green toe socks.

"Do you NOT remember the last time he was here!? Slappy is an EVIL living dummy! We can't help him!"Sara yelled.

"Dennis is a living dummy and we made him a part of the family."Amy pointed out.

"Dennis isn't EVIL!"Sara implored.

"Neither is Slappy. Well..not right now anyway. He's just rude, creepy, and maybe a little violent."Amy reasoned.

"Oh,I see. You don't want to get rid of him because you can relate to him."Sara jabbed at Amy.

Amy wanted to rip out Sara's perfect pretty dark hair. She had to hold back a snarl since her parents were watching.

"Sara darling, you aren't helping."Amy's tired mother said taking her eldest daughters arm gently and leading her to the door," Let's go in the hall,please."

Sara gawked at her mother,then her father,"You always take her side! She gets away with everything!"Sara cried out as her mother ushered her into the dim hallway.

Once Sara was gone Amy relaxed and turned to her brother and father,"Okay, here's the thing. I don't know how to describe it, but Slappy is different. More subdued or something. Seriously, as long as Slappy is here he's agreed to be my slave. So, I mean, he can't even hurt anybody unless I order him to."

Her father and brother shared a glance between them.

"I wouldn't sic him on you! Sara,maybe.."she said reading their expressions.

"Amy, I just think this is a bad idea,honey. I'm worried about you."her father said then wrapped his arms around his troubled daughter,pulling her into an awkward hug.

"Dad, you know I'm fine. This isn't something I can't handle."Amy said feeling a pang of guilt. She knew how much trouble and worry she caused him even on days without possessed toys.

He dropped a kiss in her hair and rested his cheek on the top of her head,"Oh Amy, I wish I was that optimistic..."

"What about that weird card you told us about?"asked Jed. "You could have him recite it to you instead!"

Amy looked up at her dad,"Would that work for you? Would that prove to you he'll behave?"

He sighed,"None of this works for me. But, you are growing up and you have to make your own decisions and mistakes."

"Of course this one involves a demon doll.."Jed mumbled out of the corner of his mouth.

Amy gave him a light punch in the shoulder.

"I'd prefer that this was a more normal situation,"Mr. Kramer said with resign," but Amy has always acted by her own instincts, no matter what. As it is, I've given up on Amy ever going down any life path we'd consider normal."he said patting Amy on the back while still holding her in a hug."So I'll just have to believe in those crazy instincts and be here to help if those are ever wrong."

"Umm..thanks dad."Amy said into his shirt, unsure if she should be insulted or touched."He'll only be here a little while. Don't worry." Amy pushed away from her dad's hug and straightened her hair.

He just looked at her and gave a defeated sigh.

Amy smiled in a thankful and apologetic way."I love you dad."

"I'll always be here if you need me. When things go wrong."he said and tussled Amy's wavy,wild, dark hair.

"I'll be here too,"Jed said behind Amy.

Surprised, she turned to look at him.

"But I'll be there to record the carnage."he said with a big grin.

Amy scrunched up her nose at him then reached over quickly and messed up his hair,mimicking her father."I love you too,Jed!" Jed just laughed and moved away.

"Okay,let's go do this."she said and they went back to the kitchen.

* * *

Slappy was bored.

This was boring.

He tried talking to Dennis, but the conversation was dryer and more onesided than white toast. He had been polite. He told Dennis that it looked like he was finally being taken care of. His hair was still fluffy but it looked thicker,groomed, and no longer resembled a duck's ass. He mentioned his face looked better. Someone had finally repainted and shaped his face, so now Slappy could tell which end to look at when he was talking to him. It was also nice that he didn't sound like an inbred country retard any more.

Now,Dennis seemed like a perfectly normal...human.

That idea irked Slappy for some reason he couldn't pin down.

The only thing that disgusted him more was Sara's bratty wailing. "It's not faaaiir...you don't love meeee...I want a pooonyyy..."Slappy added the last part in, but mimicked Sara's whiny tone. "Bleh!If I had my powers I'd give her something to really whine about!"he grouched.

"I'd kill you again before you could lay one finger on her,you monster."Dennis said suddenly from his leaning position against the kitchen door frame.

"Ha!"Slappy laughed,"You just got lucky,kid. Besides,"Slappy squinted at Dennis," I thought you were Amy's dum-dum,not princess piss-n'-moans."

"Don't call her that, you don't know anything about her!"Dennis snapped at Slappy.

"Yeah...you're right, I never came up with a nick name for Amy did I...? "Slappy said thoughtfully.

"You're revolting."Dennis spat.

"Nah, -good one- but that's more a common sense statement than a nick name!"Slappy laughed at his own joke.

Dennis gave him a poisonous look.

"So what's the deal with you and the princess? You two a thing or something?"Slappy asked while adjusting himself in the chair. His curiosity was piked when a look of surprise flashed across Dennis' face, then he turned away from Slappy for the first time that night. "You gotta be kiddin' me..."Slappy shook his head. Dennis said nothing.

"Alright,Slappy!"Amy announced as she walked in the kitchen with her brother and father close behind. She took a sandwich bag out of a drawer and walked over to him. "You can stay,but only if you read this to me."

Slappy looked at the bag, groaned and face palmed. His card was staring right back at him through the plastic. "Come on Amy, don't make me do this."he pleaded.

"Sorry Slappy,it's the only compromise we can make."she said.

"Can't you just get Romeo over here to follow me around?"he said gesturing with his thumb behind him at Dennis.

Amy looked confused,"What? No. Dennis doesn't have time for that. Just say the spell and I'll let you out of it when you're ready to leave."Amy said, exasperated.

Slappy eyed her suspiciously. He looked at Mr. Kramer and Jed who were watching him expectantly. "You're really going to let her do this?"he asked them in disbelief.

Mr. Kramer shook his head apathetically and shrugged.

Slappy stared back at Amy seriously,"Keep your word..."he said dangerously. He took the bag from Amy and removed the tattered card. He looked at it, then back to her. He held out his free hand to her. "We have to touch for this."

"Okie doki." Amy took his small hand in hers,palm to palm, without a second thought.

"Don't just say 'Okie doki' like this is nothing. Be serious, Amy."Slappy scolded her.

"Okie doki."she replied.

Slappy sighed miserably and hung his darkly painted head. Now he was having second thoughts. He was feeling better and maybe his brother's creeps weren't hunting him anymore? Perhaps he could just leave...

Amy gently brushed her thumb over his tiny wooden ridge of knuckles.

He raised his head and eyes back to her. He could see the innocent curiosity dance over her features as she admired his hand. Amy's hands were a bit rough, but her touch was warm and gentle in a way he hadn't been handled before.

He decided. She'd keep her word. She would take care of him. He knew he could trust her, somehow. At the least with that. He gently gripped the blade of her hand. "Karru Marri,"his voice softened and lowered as he read,"Odonna Loma,"he looked up from the card. His ultramarine eyes gazed intensely into her ordinary hazel-greens. The air grew chilled and silent. Amy gazed back at him through her dark lashes and her warm hand gently folded accepting around his cold one. His voice became deep and smooth,his eyes never breaking away from hers,the words reverberated throughout the house," Molonu Karrano."

"And that is how you're supposed to read the card."Slappy let go of Amy's hand then wiped it on his shirt as if to clean away some invisible contaminant.

Amy scoffed,"So you belong to me now, right?"

"We are one..."he said with a grimace.

"Gross, it sounded like you just got married." Jed said with a chuckle.

"SHUT UP!"Amy and Slappy both yelled at him.

Mr. Kramer went pale. "It better not be the case!"

"It's nothing like that!"Amy yelled looking frazzled. She hurried over to the oven to check on dinner. "Dinner is almost done. Go wash up already!"

Her father stared at Slappy until he looked back.

Slappy quickly looked away again.

"If you do anything to hurt her, there will be consequences. Keep in mind that Amy has an entire family that loves her very much. We take care of our own."he said sternly.

Amy felt embarrassed,"Daaad...please...I'm fine. Everything is fine. Just carry on as normal."

Mr. Kramer shook his head at his over confident teenage daughter. He turned around to leave then stopped in the doorway,"He's your responsibility now, Amy. Come what may, you are responsible for both of your actions and well being now. His problems are your problems too. I hope you can handle that." Mr. Kramer said, then left the room.

Amy and Slappy sat in silence.

"Welcome to the family."Dennis glanced morbidly from Slappy to Amy. Even with limited features,he gave Amy a betrayed look, then walked off.

Maybe she had gone too far this time. Amy knew when it came to unacceptable behavior she pushed the card further than anyone else, but she had never been over the limit before.

Later that night,after a very uncomfortable silent diner, Amy was in her bed trying to repress the last four hours of her life into the back of her mind.

She could hear Slappy rifling about her room, becoming reacquainted with it. She heard him open the closet door and she took that as her que to go to sleep. She shut her eyes and sank her cheek into her soft pillow. Amy never had a problem with falling asleep and was in the limbo between deep sleep and barely conscious when a voice spoke directly in her ear.

"I'm not sleeping in the closet."

Startled, Amy sat up and stared groggily at Slappy beside her bed. "Why not?"

"Because it's uncomfortable. I want to sleep on the bed from now on."

"But I'm sleeping on the bed."

"Then get off."

"In a word, NO."

"Your father said you were responsible for my well being now. My problems are your problems now,remember? And this is a problem."

Amy grumbled. He did say that. "He said I was responsible for both our well being, not just yours."

Slappy took off his dress shirt and slipped it on the plastic hanger that Amy hadn't noticed he was holding. He walked across the room and hung it on the doorknob. He removed his black under shirt and shook it out then inverted it. Amy furrowed her brow deeply at Slappy. His arms and torso looked completely different now. He wasn't an awkward hunk of wood anymore. He had joints and defined features. He looked like one of those creepy anatomically correct dolls that the otaku weeboos at school carried around and showed off to one another. Amy gave and amused little laugh,she remembered the time when the otaku girls got into a fight with the 'American Girl' doll gang. Man, that was hilarious. Caught up in one of her favorite memories she didn't notice Slappy until he was climbing in bed with her. "Hey! Woah! What are you doing?"

He snatched one of her pillows and settled in bed with his back to her."I'm going to sleep. So be a good 'master' and turn out the light."he said waving his articulate hand at her.

Amy frowned at his back. "The way say 'master' sounds a lot more like 'slave'. And what the hell happened to you? You looked like a Disney movie Pinocchio in the shower, but now you look like a Japanese fetish doll? The hell?"

Slappy quickly turned over. He looked at her then down at his body. She was right, he looked under his inverted under shirt and his eyes widened. His body was more articulated than he had ever developed before. Was that a belly button?

"This is most likely your fault! Probably from forcing me say those words!"he yelled at her, visibly upset.

"Oh dear god, can't you be just a little grateful? I am seriously putting my neck out for you here! My whole family thinks I'm an even bigger nut job than before and now my sister has new reason to make my life miserable." Amy got out of bed and went to go turn off the light but remembered her phone needed charging. "Crap, I'll be right back,I need my phone from the kitchen."

Slappy watched her leave. Stupid girl. Idiotic slave. As if he should be grateful to sleep in an enemies bed, or to wear barely sufficient clothes,or even worse to be physically humiliated by her. He would have his revenge. He would use her until he got his powers back then punish her twice over for this unforgivable,detestable,loaths-wait, what's that..? Slappy tossed the blanket off his legs. His little red boxer-briefs were a contrast to his alabaster colored legs. Yeah, they looked different,more human too. He felt sick, he didn't want to know, but at the same time he couldn't keep himself from checking. Propped up on one elbow he dipped a thumb under the waistband and anxiously lifted it up.

"And I mean, seriously! You were begging me for help..."Amy came walking briskly back into her room and shut the door behind her. It knocked his shirt off the knob. She cursed under her breath and dusted it off, straightening out the jeans hanging beneath it before putting it back. She turned to the bed and saw Slappy laying with his back turned to her and a pillow over his head. She rolled her eyes. She was too tired to argue, too. Amy plugged up her phone on the nightstand and turned out the light. "Goodnight, Slappy."she said as she slipped under the covers.

He said something back,but it was muffled by the pillow. It kinda sounded like 'you pervert'.


	4. Chapter 4

HorrorLand was closed. A large amount of black and yellow tape laced the enormous monster maw that served as the park's entrance. HorrorLand lay eerily silent. No werewolves could be heard,nor screams, or maniacal laughter. The entire playful,chaotic evil park was bathed in a forced silence. A black robed figure was the lone exception. It hurried through the streets and quickly ran up the stairs of the barely lit Stagger Inn. The figure entered the subdued castle-like establishment and hurried into an elevator to the top floor. Upon reaching the designated floor the figure used a skeleton key in the elevator control panel. The doors opened to a massive candle lit penthouse. They put away the key and hurried in past an open bar full of all manner of colorful bottles illuminated by candle flame. If they were full of poison or alcohol,one couldn't tell. The hooded figure hurried through an ornate dining room and dance floor,past a hallway of doors until reaching an antique ebony wood door. The figure knocked six times then waited. The door lock clicked and the door slowly opened without another sound. The huge fire place in the middle of the room was a hot dazzling light in comparison to all rooms before. The light glinted and reflected at times in the panoramic windows that overlooked all of HorrorLand.

"Have you found my brother?" a voice asked from somewhere in the room, a voice as dark as sin and smooth as silk.

"Yes,"said the hooded figure with and indistinguishable voice. "He is with a girl."

"I see his tastes haven't changed." A pale hand elegantly gripped the back of a blue velvet and mahogany lounger that sat facing the fireplace. A man pulled himself up and off the couch,to his feet. His shocking green eyes stood out behind rich auburn bangs that he quickly smoothed back. His face wore strong masculine features and pale skin dusted with faint freckles that gave him a certain boyish charm. He was tall and dressed in an all black suit with a loosened,blood red tie. He looked quiet dapper aside from the odd choice of sneakers as footwear. "Did you find my other query?"he asked walking to the fire and taking hold of an iron prod.

"Yes. She is here."the figure replied with a nod of it's hooded head.

The man spun around with a wide mad smile. "Oh is she?! Bring her to us then! We've been dying to see her.."

The hooded figure motioned to the shadows lurking in the corners of the room. The shadows began to writhe and move like turbulent waves. The shadows shifted and from a concentrated area of darkness a girl was thrown out.

She made a loud thud as she hit the hard wood floor. She quickly recovered and scrambled,shivering cold, away from the darkness that had consumed her before. Her normally sun kissed face was a horrified pallor. The girl looked around eighteen years old. She appeared thin and delicate,her long straight blonde hair spilled down her shoulders and to just below the small of her back. Her china blue eyes squinted in the, what was to her, bright room. Her teeth were chattering behind her pale lips and she hugged her arms tightly in an attempt to warm herself.

"Well, well, well..."the auburn haired man set the prod back on the hearth,then slipped his hands in his pants pockets and sauntered slowly across the space between he and she,"Look at you. Just. Look. At. You."he stared, unblinking and amused, down at her much smaller form at his feet. A delighted malice danced like flames behind his piercing green eyes.

She stared up at him with her big bambi eyes full of terror and tears. She felt panic rising in her and without the option of flight or fight she began to sobbing and covered her face with her hands. "P-p-please d-d-don't h-hurt me..!"she begged.

The man began to laugh slowly at first then louder and harder. His face contorted from twisted delight to virulent hatred. The laughter became furious shouting. He crouched down and yelled in her ear,"HA! HA! HA! THAT'S SO FUNNY! ISN'T IT, KRIS?!"

Kris screamed and cowered into a ball. Her ears were ringing from his voice. She had never been so scared in her life. Whatever was about to happen to her was going to be terrible and she didn't even know why it was happening."..please...stop.."she whimpered.

"PLEASE STOP,PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! PLEASE STOP! NO! NO! NO!"he screamed at her huddled form mocking her. "YOU LITTLE HYPOCRITE!"

The room fell silent, save for her pathetic sobs and the crackling fire.

"Look at me."he commanded her.

She stayed balled up and trembling,too scared to look at the furious man.

He knocked her over violently on the wood floor then yanked her legs away from her protective shape. She began to scramble and kick, then he was on top of her. He pinned her legs down with his own. He viciously seized her wrists and easily forced them above her head. "LOOK AT ME!"he screamed in her face.

"Oh god, help me! Somebody!Please!"she sobbed with her eyes closed tight, tossing her head side to side.

He yanked her right wrist over to her left one and easily held both with one hand. He gripped the left side of her face with his free hand and glared wildly at her. "This is your last chance. Look. At. Me."

She could feel the heat and hatred radiating off the man on top of her. She could feel him shaking with fury that she had somehow incited out of him. Kris took a shuddering breath and slowly opened her eyes. His face, those acidic green eyes, they were only inches away from hers. She wanted to close her eyes or look away but she knew she couldn't if she valued her fleeting safety.

He inhaled sharply through his nose and breathed out slowly, never breaking eye contact with the girl beneath him. "That's...better. Now..."he said poorly restraining the hidden fury behind his words. "I want..an..apology. KRIS.."he said her name emphasizing the 's' at the end with a hiss.

Through her shaking and panicked breathing she looked at him completely perplexed. "For what..?"she asked with tears trickling from the corners of her eyes.

He through his head back smiling and gave a few weak laughs. He looked at the forgotten hooded form in the dark of the room. "For what? For what, she asks..."he said to them like it was a joke.

Kris was confused and becoming more terror sick by the second.

Suddenly he glared back down at her. He cruelly squeezed her wrists and dug his knees into her thighs.

Kris gave a strangled cry and writhed beneath him,"You're hurting me,please stop..!"

"No...not until you apologize."he growled,digging his nails into the tender flesh on her face and pressing more weight into her thighs.

"I don't even know you!"she yelled desperately.

He suddenly seized up then went limp on top of her. His head hit the floor beside hers with a 'thunk'.

Kris's eyes widened in fear. Had he collapsed or was it a trick?

Then the most hateful voice she'd ever heard growled through clenched teeth in her ear,"You ran me over with a steam roller,you bitch."


	5. Chapter 5

A dummy with dark chestnut hair lay spralled out face down in a tangle of sheets. He sighed then rolled onto his back and lazily scratched his chest.

Slappy grogily opened his eyes. The sun warmed him plesantly through and through, but burned his glass retinas. Slappy tried to push away the sun with his hands,"Ehhhhhh..."

He half sat up and looked around the bedroom through squinted eyes. "Slave? Slave? Where are you? Shut these blinds..!"he ordered. There was no response, actually he couldn't hear much of anything. The house was oddly quiet. He looked at the grinning cat shaped clock with the pendulum tail and moving eyes on the wall. "Two forty? Why did my slave let me sleep so long!?"he complained before rolling off the bed with a yawn and a strech. He got dressed, but not before lament over his lost suit. Slappy looked for Amy in the kitchen, but nobody was there. He did hear a strange ticking noise coming from down the hall. He followed it to a room that he remembered used to be a large linen closet. Inside looked like an office now.

Dennis was sitting at a small desk and typing away at a keyboard. Dennis paused and glanced at Slappy in his doorway. He pressed a button on a big black telephone and turned his swivel chair to face Slappy. "What is it? I'm working. What do you need?" the fine haired dummy asked impatiently.

Slappy looked at him quizzically."Where's my slav...er..Amy, where's Amy?"

Dennis turned back to the computer and slipped a headset on."She's still at school. She's usually home by three or three fifteen. I'm guessing you didn't see the note on the fridge."

Slappy made an indistinct noise then pretended to walk away. He lingered outside the doorway to listen in on what Dennis was doing.

"Hello? Mrs. Dobson, sorry for the wait. I think I've identified the problem with your account."Dennis said in a professional tone.

Slappy rolled his eyes and sneered. A customer service job? How disgusting. Slappy couldn't understand why any self respecting monster,even one like Dennis, would want to act like a smelly,loathsome,miserable, short lived human. He stalked off to the kitchen to find this alleged note.

There was a large sheet of light orange stationary with grinning jack o' lanterns around the boarder pinned low on the refrigerator door. Written in fat black ink was:

"SLAPPY,

you've been asleep for three days, dude. I'm at school right now. I'll be back around three. It would be later but I got suspended from the softball team and-nevermind. You can watch tv if you're bored. Don't order porn."

"Why would I do something disgusting like that!? And what the hell does she mean by 'asleep for three days'!?"he screeched at the paper. "I've never slept that long without being put to sleep..what did that girl do to me!?" He crumpled up the note and threw it across the room. It went further than he expected.

Slappy became intrigued. He looked around the kitchen for something to serve his needs. On the kitchen counter he found a bowl of fresh apples. He picked up the smallest, one that he could fit his hand around. He gave the hard little fruit a good squeeze. The apple was crushed easily as if it were an over ripe pear. Slappy grinned wickedly as the juice dripped down his arm and darkened the fabric on his sleeve. Just then the cookoo clock in the living room chimed. Slappy quickly collected the apple bits. He couldn't find the trash so he tossed the bits in a ficus plant in the corner. He hurried and snatched the hand towel from the lowest oven handle and dried his hands. Slappy wiped the wet spots on the counter up just as he heard a clatter at the front door.

"S'up ya'll! I'm home!"Amy said in a surly manner walking in the house and closed the door behind her.

Slappy tossed the hand towel behind him. He posed himself in what he thought looked like a relaxed position, smiling in her direction from the kitchen bar stool. He ended up looking unintentionally creepy.

"Ack!"Amy nearly dropped her keys. "Heh, oh hey. You woke up. H-how ya' feeling?"

"You let me sleep for three days."he said dropping the smile from his face.

"I couldn't wake you up!" Amy tossed her backpack in the hall closet. "Every time I tried you'd swat at me or start flailing like a spider on a hot plate."She said wiggling her arms around. She joined Slappy in the kitchen and sat down in the bar stool beside him. "AND, I've had to sleep on the couch,ya know. Turns out you kick like a mule in your sleep."she lifted her shirt to show him two bruises on her right side.

Slappy chuckled.

Amy frowned at him. "Yeah, well...I hope you're feeling better."she picked up an apple and took a bite.

Slappy picked up another apple. "Much better. Thank you, slave."he said gazing at the red flesh and looking very satisfied.

"I'm not your damn slave. Stop calling me that."Amy snapped at him with her mouth full.

He lightly laughed. "Oh, my mistake. I suppose you're my master now? Well, alright 'master',what would you have me do?"

"I don't like your condescending tone,"she told him with a sideways look,"but I do need someone to help me retrieve softballs from the abandoned neighborhood down the highway."

Later Amy was trudging down the path she had worn into the side of the highway to her favorite place to be alone. She and Slappy had changed their clothes to something more appropriate. The were wearing matching black and orange softball uniforms and kleets. The only differences were the sizes, obviously, and the player number on the back of the shirts. Slappy was '66' and Amy was '13'. Not that you could see Amy's number since she was carrying Slappy on her back.

"You know a little dirt won't kill, ya."she said feeling irritated and kind of like a mule.

"Yuck! While you may have no qualms with rolling in filth at the drop of a hat, I prefer not to get my hands dirty. Why do you think I get slaves?"he said haughtily.

Amy sighed then started jogging. Twenty or thirty extra pounds wasn't a big deal for her to carry around. "You're getting off once we get to the abandoned lot and you are carrying the ball bag home!"

Slappy rolled his eyes. Fat chance.

They jogged about a mile until they came to a partially paved road that went off the highway. There was a wooden gate up blocking it with a large red sign that read "STOP NO ENTRY". Amy walked around it and went down the decline. "They cleared this area out about three years ago to build a neighborhood, but the construction company went bankrupt and nothing was ever built."Amy explained as they walked through the overgrowth of the sprawling lot. The noise from the highway faded with every step. "Although, there is another story going around." Amy said as she jumped over some holes in the ground then skidded down a steep embankment and turned twards the edge of the woods. She pointed at something in the shadow of the trees. "There's this like,hundred year old house out there that they say the construction company couldn't knock down because it's haunted or something."Amy told Slappy. "It's really weird. There used to be a really creepy dilapidated old neighborhood here that nobody seemed to have know about until the company bought the land. All the other ruined buildings came down fine except that one. The rumors about it hit every spectrum of weird from there out."

"So, then why are we walking closer to it?"Slappy asked and gripped tighter on her shoulders.

Amy came to a stop around fifty yards away from the lonely house. "The call it The Dead House."she said in a dramatic hushed voice. "I like to hit balls through the attic window."

* * *

A warm afternoon breeze tickled the tops of over grown shoots of grass and marigolds, making them dance among themselves.

"I'm not going in there."Slappy said slouching down lower on Amy's back.

"Heck yeah, you are."Amy said taking a large step into dense thigh deep grass.

"I don't think you really want to go in there and I know I don't!" Slappy yanked hard on Amy's ponytail.

Amy's head jerked back and she was thrown off balance. She cursed and stumbled backwards almost falling over her own feet. "The HELL? What was that for,you little turd!?"she yelled after recovering her footing.

"Silence slave!" Slappy shouted at her loosing his patience. He gripped tighter to her shirt collar. He shook his head in frustration then told her sternly,"I said we are not going in there. Now,turn around and take me home!"

"That's it!" she shouted and started to flail her arms trying to snatch Slappy off her back. "Get off so I can kick your ass!"

"Damn it, slave-!"Slappy held tight to her broad hips with his legs. He bobbed and weaved away from Amy's grasping hands. "You are by far the worst slave I've ever seen!"

"You think I'm bad!?"she yelled and started spinning around in a vain, looking a lot like a dog chasing it's tail. "You're so bad that I should start calling you 'Crappy' instead of 'Slappy'!"

"Why you-!"Slappy yanked her ponytail again so hard he was surprised he didn't rip it out. Amy made a comical noise as her head suddenly snapped back. She fell flat backwards into the carpet of dense weeds and on top of Slappy. He yelped in surprise and instantly let go of the teenage girl.

"Owww..."Amy groaned on top of her dummy. A flurry of dandelion fluff and pollen snowed down on them.

"Get off of me...now!"he demanded and pushed on her shoulders.

"Are you trying to give me whiplash!? What's the matter with you!?" Amy cried and rubbed the back of her neck, with Slappy still under her.

"Fine! Go in the house! I dare you to! See what happens.."he said giving up his struggle.

"I will!"Amy barked back at him. She sat up half way, then spitefully dropped back down again on Slappy. He yelped then she jumped to her feet nimbly.

From his prone position at the bottom of the grass impression, Slappy watched Amy dust the wild flora off her clothes. The uniform sheaths framed her, giving him an illusion of tunnel vision. "Bitch."he cursed.

Amy flipped him off with both hands vigorously as she walked backwards to the house. He sat up when she was out of his field of vision. "Stupid."he said softly.

Amy grabbed up her fallen ball bag and briskly charged into the woods. "Little creep.."she growled under her breath, then stepped under the canopy of shadow.

The trees were thick with leaves that choked out the September sun. Amy's eyes widened to adjust to the sudden change in lighting. It was dark, but it was also much cooler in the shade.

Amy trudged through rotted leaves as she ascended up the incline to the front porch.

She had never come this far before. Her better sense told her that going inside the manky old house was a bad idea. But, she didn't have Slappy with her the last time that she had wanted to go retrieve the boon of softballs that she had accidentally squirreled away through the attic window. He would at least be witness if something happened to her. Besides, he had to have some reason for putting up with everything that happened so far. She knew if Slappy wanted her dead,she would be.

Amy turned around to look for Slappy but he was nowhere to be seen. "Whatever."

Amy grasped the front screen door and pulled. It gave easily from it's rusted latch. Amy pushed it aside and gripped the door knob. She took a moment for hesitation then turned the knob.

The door suddenly fell into the house and almost dragged her with it. The loud 'crack' sound the door made echoed through the empty house. Amy stood stunned like a deer in headlights until the echos ended. 'Oops.' she took a big breath and puffed out her modest chest.

"Alright, I'm gettin' my balls!"she announced then marched into the musty old house. She just had to go up the stairs and into the attic. 'No problem. Ten minutes tops.'she thought hard to herself in an attempt to rationalize her animal instincts into submission. She found the stairs and took the first step.

Something moved. Amy turned her head quickly to the right. "Slappy?"she called. "If that's you I'm gonna-" Amy was stopped halfway by loud banging from within the walls. Amy covered her ears and cringed,"Aww shit!"

She took off up the stairs quickly and turned right. It was almost pitch black up here. Amy pressed her hand against the wall. She followed it until her fingers bumped into a door frame. The banging was following her. She fumbled in the dark for the door knob, groping for anything. Her hand finally found the handle and Amy turned it and pushed hard.

She went tumbling to the floor face first and had the wind knocked out of her. She flipped over and kicked the door shut. The banging abruptly stopped. Amy lay prone on the floor. Her neck hurt again and so did her nose. Amy took a sharp inhale of breath and almost choked. If it was from the stale cloud of dust she has dislodged or her own bloodied nose she couldn't decide.

"GODDAMMIT!"she roared cupping a hand protectively over her injury. Amy had a coughing fit and swatted away at the barely visible dust clouds that surrounded her. She stood hoping she could rise above the choking haze. She chastised herself,"Good job,Amy. You spooked yourself stupid." Amy coughed again then spotted where a miniscule source of light was coming from. She staggered over to the dirty curtains and threw them open. There was an enormous bay window behind them and a bench seat just in front of it. Somebody probably sat there and gazed out at whatever was interesting to see back in the day. The window was filthy with grime, but still let in enough light for her to see again. "How do you open this thing?" Amy fumbled around with her fingers to try to find a latch.

"I wouldn't do that." a voice from to the right of Amy said.

Amy shrieked and fell on her butt.

"Heh..don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you."they said.

"I'm pretty sure that's what most derelict house dwelling murderers say before they kill you."

"Maybe, but I'm not going to kill you. I can't."

Amy noticed a slight movement on the bench beside her. An old fashion,hipster looking hat covered in dust rose up all on its own to cap an invisible owner.

"I'd just like some of your blood if you don't mind. I don't see how it would be a problem,with you bleeding everywhere already." The invisible man swiftly shut the dusty curtains. "Well, everywhere, but where I need you to bleed."

A boy who looked to be around her age, materialized beneath the hat before her. All his color was ebbed away making him appear to look like some old black and white actor. Amy realized she had been staring and quickly scrambled to her feet. "Sorry about that. I ,um, got a bit spooked there." Amy said sticking one hand in a pant pocket and the other touching her still dripping nose. "Ugh..gross. I guess this uniform top is ruined."

"Could you come closer,please?"he asked politely.

Amy stared at him. She ran the most likely scenario of what could happen if she listened to him in her head, and decided the outlook wasn't good. "Why would I want to come over there?"she asked carefully.

"I'd like for you to bleed on my bones."he said without blinking an eye.

"Hmmm...that sounds pervy."Amy commented.

The boy smiled and put his hands in his pants pockets. "Ha, yeah it does.."he confessed looking down at his feet bashfully,"but it really isn't."

He was charming,she'd give him that. "You're pretty cute for a ghost."she said pinching her nose the tilting her head up.

"Well, thank you."he said running a hand through his wavy medium length hair nervously. "But..could you?"he gestured to the darker corner of the room.

Amy thought about it. This had to be some kind of a trap. "What's over there?"she asked sounding muffled."You're not going to suddenly turn into some bloodthirsty monster or demon the moment I step into the dark over there are you?"

He sighed impatiently,"No...I don't think I will."

"'You don't think'? That's encouraging."Amy suddenly coughed then gagged. She spat out bloody drainage out all over the floor. "BLEEEH!"Amy said in disgust.

"Aww come on!"he protested looking at the floor.

"I'm sorry."Amy murmured apologetically to him while she hunched forward to avoid bleeding more on herself.

"Look! You're already bleeding! All you have to do is walk five feet to your right!"he gestured pleadingly behind him. Amy pitied him and his cute sad face. "Okay.."she said and crossed to the dark side. It was so dim that she didn't see the bed until her knees bumped into it. "Ouch!"

He chuckled charmingly then seemed to float up beside her. His body gave off a grey white glow that illuminated the bed."You sure are clumsy."

Amy was embarrassed. "I'm just having an off day today!"she retorted. He chuckled again then sat down on the bed, which didn't seem to notice he was there.

He wasn't kidding about those bones.

"This is me."he said looking at the skeleton laying on the bed. It looked like a re-assembled puzzel by the way the bones had been laid out.

"What happened to you?"Amy asked sadly.

"It's a long story." He placed his sheer hand over the skeleton's hand and it passed right through. Amy came closer and blood dribbled down her chin then onto the hand with a 'plip'.

He gasped lightly.

Amy tilted her head down and the blood trickled out,splattering on the hand.

The ghost's mouth hung open slightly and a soft moan escaped his pale lips,"Ahhh.."he held his ghostly hand to his chest and closed his eyes.

Amy cupped her nose and ceased the stream."I thought you said this wasn't pervy..."she narrowed her eyes at him accusingly.

"It's not!"he said looking at her with desperate eyes.

Amy rolled her eyes then moved her cupped hand to the skull smeared it from the crown, down the brow, and to the cheek bone. "I don't know why I'm doing this."Amy said catching more droplets of blood dripping down her chin.

"Thankyou..."he sighed.

She glanced at him surprised to see color returning to his ghostly visage. "No seriously, why am I doing this?"she asked.

He bent forward and held his head in his hands,"I need you to help me recover."he said in a hushed voice.

"Okay..." Amy cocked a brow at him, the hell if she knew what that was supposed to mean, but she was pretty curious to see how this all would play out. Amy .mentally resigned herself to keep going. "So... how much more blood do you need? I'm getting a little light headed."she asked while streaking blood across the jaw then down the spine.

"I'd really like all of it, to be honest."he said looking at her with devious sparkle in his ethereal eyes.

"Nope."Amy said quickly. This was fascinating as hell, but there was no way she was bleeding out for this guy. Really cute guy...

"I thought so much."he gently laughed. "All I should really need are a few good smears or drops on every bone."

"Oh, is that all?"Amy asked sarcastically. She looked at her macabre finger painting project. The top half of his body was pretty much done. "Meh...alright,I'll try my best. I mean, I've already come this far, I might as well see it through. I can't promise my nose will hold out though."

"You're funny."he said with a smile.

"Really? Do you mean funny 'ha ha' or funny 'call the police'?" she asked with sideways bloody grin.

The boy laid back across the ruined bed. "Funny as in 'not phased by a dead guy asking her to bleed all over him' sort of way."he replied."You are a bit odd."

"Are you complaining?"she asked with a smirk.

He sat back up quickly and looked at her,"Never."

Amy worked sparingly with her blood to cover as much space as possible down his skeleton. It did occur to her that this whole event was crazy,ridiculously improbable, and not to mention dangerous. She kind of enjoyed it.

Things got awkward around his pelvis bone. Amy just let her nose slowly drip down on him there. They didn't look at each other.

When Amy reached his legs she became impatient and decided to speed things up. "Okay,we're in the home stretch.."Amy said then covered her nose with both hands and blew hard. She definitely felt light headed now. Hot blood filled her palms and Amy quickly slathered him down. "Done!"she exclaimed a little delirious.

"My name is Ray, by the way."the ghost said to Amy before laying down on top of his skeletal remains, which he seemed to phase into.

"I'm Amy."she said giving a weak wave then plopped down on the floor to rest.

The creaky old bed started to shake as the bones began convulsing and sucking the bloody smears up like a sponge. Amy watched in disgusted awe as a human body reconstructed itself around the frame of bones. The body came to rest when it was complete. Amy waited and tried not to look at his crotch since he was naked. His face was the same as his apparition before,but pale and lifeless. "Well,if that didn't work, then you make a good looking corpse,Ray."

Amy slowly stood up on wobbly legs. She held her dizzy head."I've got to make my nose stop bleeding..." Suddenly Amy felt herself falling. The room rushed past her eyes as gravity took her down.

Cold arms wrapped themselves around her. She found herself staring lethargic at the floor before being lifted up into the cold arms.

Ray held the girl bridal style in his arms. He turned and gently lay her on the bed he had just been occupying. "Amy.."he said looming over her.

"Oh hey...you're okay, Ray."Amy replied weakly with a smile. His eyes flickered with inhuman night shine as he took in the curves of her face. "I just want you to know,"he said seriously and touched her cheek tenderly,"that I am really sorry about this."

Amy, even in her blood loss haze,felt unease knot up in her stomach,"It's not..a problem. I'll be fine after a bit of a lie down.."

Ray bridged the gap between them and kissed her.

Amy gave a muffled, weak cry of protest but Ray devoured the sound by intensifying the kiss. Her mind went blank. Amy's brain couldn't process whether she should be terrified or excited by the cold handsome creature ravishing her lips. She didn't kiss him back,but she didn't resist him either. Ray broke away and Amy gasped for air. Ray licked her pouty upper lip, then her nose, then...

Suddenly, Amy realized what was happening. He was licking her face clean. Amy was not amused. "Ray...d-don't.."she murmured as he licked the last from her throat. Amy felt goosebumps raise all over her skin.

Now,they stared at each other, Ray and Amy were nose to nose. His tongue flicked out and captured a fresh drip of blood from the tip of her nose."Amy,I promise it won't hurt."

"What...?"she asked confused.

Ray lowered his mouth to her throat and gave the flesh above her jugular vein a long lick, as if to mark it.

Amy tried to struggle but she could barely lift her arms."..shit." Amy shut her eyes and hoped he was telling the truth.

"Hey, kid,"a third voice rang from the dark doorway. Glowing green eyes glared through the darkness that surrounded them. A few clacking steps echoed against the silent walls as he stepped into the dim light. Slappy stood there,a hand in his pocket and the other held a softball. He leisurely tossed and caught the ball a few times with one hand. His eyes stayed locked with Ray's. He furrowed his wooden brow deeply, then pointed at him with the ball in his hand."That's mine."


	6. Chapter 6

Ray slowly lifted his upper body away from Amy and took a moment to evaluate the intruder in his doorway.

A dummy that looked to be a little over three feet tall and wearing an identical softball uniform to the victim beneath him was staring at him with an evil green glowing glare. Ray had just been revived and was still in desperate need of blood to complete the transformation. This thing claiming Amy belonged to him was obviously dangerous, but Ray couldn't afford to lose his opportunity to become flesh and blood again.

_Even if it wasn't his blood.._

"I don't know what sort of thing you are, but I suggest you leave now, while you still have a chance to." Ray bluffed with his best poker face.

Slappy squeezed the softball in his grip tightly enough to make the leather groan. "I'm your worst nightmare, if you don't get off of my slave immediately, kid."

Ray's expression turned dangerous. His eyes glowed like lit cigarettes and he shifted his posture in the shroud of darkness, making him look like a wild animal defending it's kill."Get out."

"GET. OFF." Slappy demanded, equally unmoved.

Ray sneered at the dummy's response. He couldn't be sure of how strong of an opponent the doll would be. He got the feeling that if either of them were to make the first move, it shouldn't be him. "No. Come and get her if you want her."

The living dummy and the undead watcher stared each other down waiting for the other to make the first move. Slappy became bored with the situation and looked below Ray to the object of their desire. "Get up,Amy. You're taking me home."

Amy made a half whimper, half groan in response. "C-can't...bleeding face.."

"A little boo-boo? You look enough like a man,so act like one and get up!"Slappy shouted.

Amy slowly turned her head and looked at Slappy. "S-Slappy..."She slowly reached out to him. Her outstretched hand trembled, then turned palm up. Slappy and Ray watched as she folded her hand into a fist, except her middle finger, which she shakily waved at Slappy.

"Goddammit,Amy." Slappy couldn't believe her stupidity.

As amusing as Amy was, he needed her blood now. Ray deftly captured the offending hand and yanked it straight up,exposing her arm to his smirking mouth.

Amy couldn't turn her head quick enough to see Ray bite into her forearm, but she did feel the burning sensation of being cut and and the pressure of Ray's mouth sucking out her blood.

That liar, this really hurt, she thought to herself.

"You little_ bastard_!"Slappy cursed then threw the softball hard at Ray's head.

The softball hit with a sickening splatter and cracking sound. Ray's head was knocked into the wall by the force of the blow.

"Amy! Get up and get away now!"Slappy yelled at the now free girl.

Ray snarled at Slappy. Crushed flesh dangled from his right brow and cracked ivory bone glistened from beneath. The dummy was stronger than he could handle in his current state. Desperation drove Ray's next move. He couldn't be deprived of his chance to leave this god forsaken house. He quickly seized up Amy and sank his fangs into her neck. He was able to draw out five good swallows of blood before being wrent off of her.

Ray was thrown across the room and crashed halfway through the dilapidated wall.

Slappy hopped up on the bed and shouted angrily,"Amy!?" His eyes widened. _She wasn't moving._ His eyes quickly located where she was bleeding from punctures in her jugular vein. He quickly took his shirt off and balled it up. He pressed it to the injury and held it firmly while feeling for her pulse on the other side.

It was weak...he had never had a slave die on him before.

_What would happen? They had both said the words...would her death effect him too?_

"Amy...Amy!"he yelled trying to wake her. "You stupid stubborn cow! Why didn't you just listen to me?" He suddenly felt sick. He realized she wasn't going to wake up. _He had to get her out of the house._

Slappy struggled with her soft human form trying to lift her in his arms, but he couldn't compensate for their size difference. "Goddammit Amy!"he yelled in frustration. Before he could try to think of another idea he was jerked away from Amy and found himself being choked against the wall.

Ray's hands tightened like a vice grip on the dummy's throat. "I'm going to pop your head off!"he growled.

Slappy thrashed wildly and tried to free himself from the undead young man's hold, but felt his newly recovered strength was fading as quickly as Amy.

Ray had recovered completely. His wound was gone and his strength was more than formidable.

Slappy heard a loud noise then the whole room went dark.

* * *

Ray tossed the dummy's body carelessly to the ground somewhere near it's decapitated head. Although it wasn't completely fulfilling, what Ray had consumed of Amy had restored him to a point where he wouldn't have to worry about spontaneously disintegrating.

_More blood would secure that._

He sauntered back to the bed where Amy lay.

He looked at her defenseless form limply draped on the decaying wool cover. At that moment he had two choices before him: If he could get her help, he could still be saved or he could drink her dry and make her like him.

The left corner of Ray's mouth rose in a half smirk. He knew she would make for an entertaining companion.

_That is...if she could ever forgive him. He couldn't forgive Compton Dawes._

Ray halted over her. The thought of that man made him feel both angry and sad.

_It was all his fault! Compton had started this entire gruesome cycle of undeath!_

Ray emotions turned as he thought of his family and how they chose to die rather than live an undead life. Of his friends and how they suffered in their miserable undeaths, always carrying a burden of guilt with each new family they ensnared. Staring down at Amy barely breathing, he remembered the night he was turned by none other than Compton Dawes himself.

_No one deserved to die this way. Or live this way._

Tears rolled down his cheeks before he realized it. Embarrassed, he quickly wiped them away. Ray knelt beside her and examined his bite on her neck. They were fine and appeared to be trying to coagulate and heal over. Urgency sobered him quickly and he knew he needed to hurry. "Amy, I'm so sorry! I've made a terrible mistake...!"he lamented as he pressed the small uniform shirt back against her neck.

"_You certainly did..._"Slappy said darkly as he snapped his head back on his neck.

Ray looked back up and was shocked to see the doll was still alive. "Look, I don't want to fight anymore, please. There's still time, we can save her!"Ray exclaimed.

Slappy scoffed at him skeptically. "You changed your tune pretty fast, didn't you?"

Ray looked back down to Amy in his arms. "I've been trapped here a long time...I was just so desperate to be free that I...,"Ray shut his eyes and hung his head in shame,"..I'm not a monster...I just act like one sometimes."

"Pathetic little snot.."Slappy hissed in distaste. While he was reluctant to collaborate with the boy, he knew he couldn't carry Amy himself. He really didn't have any choice, did he? "Fine, but you have to carry her. Now hurry."he said turning to leave.

Ray lifted Amy carefully in his arms.

Slappy paused before taking another step. "But first.."he pointed at Ray's lower abdomen,"..put something on. Nobody wants to see your zipper ripper."

"What?"Ray questioned stupidly, then remembered his nakedness."Oh."he said bashfully. It took Ray a few moments to set Amy down and wrap the blanket around his waist securely, then they hurried out of the DeadHouse.

Ray hissed in pain at the sudden light. The sun had just dipped below the horizon and twilight was setting in. His skin heated, even in the gloom of the trees.

"What's wrong?"Slappy asked.

Ray squinted his eyes and set his jaw in resolve." Nothing..let's go."he said then sprinted forward..0

Slappy followed behind,but quickly caught up. "Follow me to where she lives!"he shouted to Ray.

Ray let out a cry of pain as they exited the protective canopy of trees. His skin began to smoke and sizzle.

Slappy suddenly changed direction,"This way!"he made a bee line across the vacant lot into the trees that lined the highway. Once back inside the shadows he looked beside him at Ray. The boy's skin was splotchy and burned and his face was contorted in pain. "Don't fall apart until we get to the house! We're almost there,so don't slow down!"

Ray nodded and easily jumped an eroded creek along side the dummy.

Slappy, despite his short stature, kept up with Ray and lead him to the Kramer's. Ray was reeling in pain on the front porch from the lack of shade and nearly slammed into the front door.

Slappy tried the door knob, but it was locked. In a fit of panic he summoned enough strength to rip the knob off and bashed the door in with his shoulder. The trio tumbled in. Ray fell to his knees breathing hard, still clutching Amy protectively.

"DENNIS!"Slappy called and slammed the front door, cutting off the cascade of natural light.

There was a loud clatter from within the house as family members poured from all different rooms. Dennis came out of his room first,headset on, and gasped. "I'll have someone look into that for you! I have to go!"he shouted then flung the head set off and darted to them.

Ray gently laid Amy down on the floor in font of Dennis.

"Oh my god...Amy.."Dennis whispered in horror. He dropped to his knees and looked her over.

Mrs. Kramer shrieked at the sight of her daughter and the half naked,burned boy.

"Oh my god! What happened!?"Sara screamed from the bottom of the stairs.

"Sara, call an ambulance!"Dennis yelled over his shoulder then pulled away the blood soaked shirt from Amy's neck. "Someone turn on a light!"

"No!"Ray shouted. "Please wait!"he looked at Sara and begged."Do you have a basement..?"

"It's this way!"Slappy growled. He grabbed Ray by the arm and practically dragged him down hall, then opened the door to the basement and threw Ray down the stairs. Slappy turned back to the Kramers,"Now somebody turn on a light!"

* * *

It was dark. Only the hypnotic sound of 'tick,tock' echoed through the empty house.

The Kramer family was gone. Gone to the hospital to be with his dying slave. Surely one of the Kramers were a matching blood type for Amy.

Slappy sat quietly in the kitchen where he had been since the family had left five hours ago. They said they would call if Amy was fine..._or if she.._

Slappy held his face in his hands. "What the hell is wrong with me...? Why did I say the words? Why did I come back to_ her_?" Slappy slumped over until he lay his head on the cold kitchen counter. "I should have gone to Jimmy. He's a coward, but at the least that gives him the good sense to listen to me!"

Light from a passing car came and went across the living room and kitchen. Then there was blackness.

The clock kept it's time and an hour meandered on.

"What do you want?"Slappy said bitterly.

Ray cautiously pulled up a chair beside Slappy."I'm sorry."he said as he sat down.

"I should kill you but_ I don't think I can_."Slappy said not lifting his head or wanting to acknowledge another unwanted change in himself.

Ray gave a weak sarcastic laugh."All you have to do is turn on a light brighter than forty watts and I'll be nothing but bones."

"That isn't what I meant, but I'll remember that."Slappy said.

"I really am sorry."Ray said once again.

The two creatures sat in shared shared silence, lost in their own thoughts for over an hour.

Slappy gave a resigned sigh then sat up in his chair. "So what's your story, kid?"

Ray didn't answer at first, but eventually shrugged wearily. "It isn't something I like talking about, but I guess I owe you a fairly large debt at this point. I'm sorry I nearly killed your friend and popped off your head off."

Slappy slammed his fist down on the counter, making Ray flinch."Amy is not my friend! Got that? She's nothing but a means to an end. NOTHING more. When our business together is over we're never seeing each other again as long as we live!"

Ray shirked away from him."Okay...sorry..."

Slappy pointed aggressively at Ray,"If you keep apologizing I'll turn on every light in this house and call it a mercy killing. Grow a pear,kid! You're a monster, not a human!"

Ray looked insulted,"I'm not a monster. I'm-"

"You got it wrong before."Slappy said sounding calmer. He shook his head twice then looked Ray straight in his undead eyes."You aren't a human that acts like a monster. You are a monster that acts like a human."

Ray looked away to avoid giving Slappy a dirty look. He could feel a waves of self resentment coiling up in the pit of his stomach."I'm not.."

"You aren't human anymore, Ray."Slappy stated bluntly.

Ray clenched his jaw and turned further away from the living dummy. He didn't know when this guy picked up his name, but he didn't really care either.

The tension between them was like a dense fog as they sat there not speaking.

Slappy relented his insistence, relaxing in his chair he decided not to push the issue. "I interrupted you. Continue with your story."he said.

Ray really didn't feel like telling it now, especially since he wasn't feeling all that bad about decapitating Slappy anymore. But he felt it was a story he needed to share.

"I was thirteen when I died."Ray clasp his hands together in front of him on the counter. "My mother, sisters, grandmother, and a stupid little scott terrier my baby sister found all moved into the Dead house. At the time, it was like a dream come true. Mother was always working. She did any honest work she could find just so she could keep us kids and Gran' clothed, fed, and a roof over our heads. She nearly worked herself to death once..."Ray trailed off,accidentally accessing a long forgotten memory. He hurriedly repressed it again and resumed his tale."Inheriting a whole huge house for free was a godsend. Our 'Great Uncle Charles' left it to us in his will. Looking back, I can't believe we fell for that." Ray unclenched his hands long enough to run one through his messy hair,pushing it back. "We lived there for a year before they came for us." His eyes grew misty,"I..._we_ trusted that man with our lives. _That.._"his voice darkened with hate and he covered his face with his hands as if he were trying to hide,"_..that traitor.."_he said on a wispy breath.

Slappy had a sudden disgusting urge to reach over and console the boy. Thankfully, he stopped himself from doing so at the last second.

Ray bit his bottom lip painfully hard, drawing very dark blood before he continued his story. "He took us to the grave yard, at night, and the entire town was there. It's almost funny how everything was fine one moment, then the next..my baby sister Emily..."Ray's breath hitched and he all but crumpled over the counter. He fisted his hands in his hair and began weeping long pent-up tears. "She was only three and they killed her!"he sobbed. "They killed all of them!"he yelled close to hysterics. Ray cried into his hands. It had been so long ago that it felt so unfair that he could still remember that night so clearly. After a few minutes he composed himself enough to continue, but his voice was weak and trembling,"They made me watch. I couldn't fucking get free! _He_ had chained me to the twisted old tree at the center of cemetery'' _He made me go last._ I saw my entire family laying dead on the ground after being drunk dry by people we thought were our friends. Then the one person I trusted more than anyone else in my life, took me for himself...and turned me into this." Ray looked at his cold pale hands then took a shuddering breath. "When I woke up I was in an unfamiliar bed. I ran down the stairs of a house that wasn't my own and found my mother. She was at the kitchen table, talking to that man. When he saw me he acted as if what happen the night before was no big deal." Ray scoffed,"Like it was something normal." His hands trembled as he clasped them back together. "He said he only did what he did to me because I was special..'the watcher' he called it. It was my job to keep watch over the town and most importantly, the new arrivals. He even said he'd_ pay me_ for my trouble..."he said feeling revolted.

"What choice did we have? So, we...'_lived_' that way for about seven months. When the next family moved into the dead house my mother realized what we would have to do to them, she couldn't bare it." Ray's expression became wistful and distant. "She must have known something I didn't at the time, because she didn't take me with her. She did leave a note for me, but she didn't tell me why I was left behind. Mother said she had taken our family outside of town to roast marshmallows and stargaze all night. She.."Ray swallowed some tears and breathed a shuddering breath before he continued,"..she said that when the sun came up, they were all going to go to heaven and not to cry." Ray sniffled then wiped his cheeks with the back of his hand. "Mother was always very patronizing, but she was the only parent I ever had." Ray began to tangent, unconsciously attempting to dull the sting of a parental rejection.

"By time I found the note it was already too late. I had just spent my first night watching over the new family and then Dawes had kept me preoccupied until morning. It was an abnormally sunny day that day, so..I had to wait. When I found them that night, they were nothing but bones, clothes, and dust. Each had a neat little pile all their own, ya' know..?"Ray smiled sadly at Slappy.

Slappy just stared back.

Ray looked back his hands. "I buried them, in the graveyard,under their cosmetic tombstones. Then I did my _job_, checked in with Dawes, then...waited for the sun to come up myself."Ray gave a weak laugh,"Let me tell ya',I don't think mother knew how bad it was going to hurt going out like that, or she would never have taken our family on that trip."he said shaking his head slowly.

"I burned up like a wicker man, but I didn't stay dead. The next thing I knew, I was at Compton's place again, naked and covered in blood. I don't know who he murdered to bring me back, but he let me know three things: if I tried doing what he did on my family that it wouldn't work, that the town couldn't be without it's watcher, and last, he had the gall to tell me that he l-..._cared about me_. He said he never wanted to find me dead again. I was still young and stupid so, I stayed with him.

The next ceremony was just as horrible as when it happened to me. I didn't have to feed that time, but I watched and afterwards I swore that we would never feed on another family so brutally again. Over the next year I figured out ,by experimenting on animals, how to make feeding not hurt.

'_Life_' became a little bit less horrible after that." Ray stood up and readjusted the blanket around his hips. "The last family who lived in the Dead House actually escaped. There was a boy and a girl...they killed me with a goddammed flashlight." Ray gave a bitter chuckle and sighed. "After that, they went on to knock over that tree on top of the entire town during the feeding ceremony. Sunlight poured in and everybody died, except for their family and Compton. "Ray smiled as timid light began filtering through the front widows. "Compton told me about it when he finally found my bones in the graveyard. It was about a year after the neighborhood went under. I'd really like to thank them for what they did someday." Ray looked to the windows and could see dawn approaching. He unwrapped the blanket from his waist and unfolded it to drape around his whole body. "After that, Dawes took my bones and set them back in the Dead House. He sold the neighborhood, I guess, and never came back. I've been trapped ever since."

Just then the phone rang. Neither Slappy nor Ray moved to answer it. The answering machine picked it up after three rings. "Slappy,"Mr. Kramer said sternly,"if you're still there, then you should know that you and I are going to have a long conversation when I come home. We'll be home soon. Amy is going to be fine." The phone hung up.

Slappy groaned in relief then hopped down from his chair and stretched."So, the man from your story...you're talking about _Compton Dawes_, right?"

Ray eye widened and he nodded."Yeah."

Slappy looked up at Ray. "I know him. He sold me my penthouse in HorrorLand."Slappy untucked his blood speckled white under shirt from the pants he had been wearing from the day before. " Although, after what you just told me, I'm thinking that I should just let my brother have it."


	7. Chapter 7

Mr. Kramer kissed his wife before she laid down in bed. "Just get some rest. I'll handle things today."

"Alright. Please,let me know if Amy calls."she sighed.

"I will. Sleep tight." Mr. Kramer left the room and closed the door softly behind him. Before he went to Amy's room he decided to check in with Sara. "May I come in?"he asked after giving her door three knocks. There was a rustling noise inside then Sara opened the door. His eldest daughter looked up at him with her tired olive-green eyes.

"What is it dad?"she asked innocently.

"I just wanted to see if you were doing okay. Have you eaten?"he asked pushing his glasses back up his nose. Motion caught his eye from behind Sara. He wasn't all that surprised to see Dennis in her room picking up some crumpled up papers off the floor. "Hello Dennis. Will you take today off work,too?"he asked peering around Sara.

Denis deposited the papers in the trash can. "Yeah,but I might take over the night shift tho, so I won't lose my overtime."Dennis replied looking a bit more disheveled than usual.

Mr. Kramer felt sympathy for him, being a working man himself. "I hear that. Just don't over do it. Are you still taking those online classes, too?"

"Yes sir,Mr. Kramer."he said with a respectful nod.

If Dennis were human, he would be the perfect boyfriend for Sara. It really was too bad he wasn't. "That's really great,Dennis. You're a more successful person than most humans I know."

If Dennis could blush,he would."Thank you, Mr. Kramer."

"Well, I have to go have a talk with Slappy."he sighed."You two try to get some rest."

"Okay daddy."Sara kissed his cheek then closed her door.

* * *

Mr. Kramer walked down the hall to Amy's room. He stepped in unannounced through the open door and glanced to the window.

Slappy was sitting in an antique wooden chair at the window that had once belonged to his wife's great grandmother. Amy had insisted and begged to keep it when the family cleared out the attic last fall. For some odd reason she loved that old thing.

"Can we talk?" he asked as he walked to Amy's bed and sat down on the elaborate quilt.

The ventriloquist dummy didn't respond. He only stared at him with intense blue eyes.

"Amy is going to be okay." He said plainly. Mr. Kramer searched the dummy's expression for any reaction but didn't see one. He sighed,"Sara has the same blood type so, the transfusion went smoothly." Mr. Kramer paused again for any response, but there was nothing. He lifted his glasses off the bridge of his nose and rubbed his tired eyes. "I'm not blaming you for what happened..."

The dummy's expression didn't change. He didn't breathe. He didn't blink. He didn't move. For a moment Mr. Kramer wondered if Slappy was just a doll again or not. He stared at the doll and noticed a minute eye movement.

_Damn._

He settled on the bed and began what he figured would be a one sided conversation,"I guess I should start from the beginning. Even before you happened, Amy has always been a willful child. We thought it was because she's a middle child and that's how she tries to be noticed. We thought she had grown out of it for a while after she turned seven. Amy started doing better in school, she made friends, she didn't mouth off, and she even got along with Sara and Jed." Mr. Kramer shrugged dramatically then continued,"Then you came along and..well we know now that she wasn't just acting out _then_...but after you she suddenly changed again. It was shocking to her mother and me. Suddenly, she was getting in fights with kids at school and then Jed and Sara at home, talking back to teachers and us, then there's just...all this antisocial behavior. She's pushed away all her friends except for Margo and that's because they don't go to school together anymore."

Slappy crossed his arms and legs then reclined in the chair.

"Amy has progressively started taking more risks..she ends up in these dangerous situations with no regard for her own safety, and it honestly scares the hell out of me. There's nothing we can do about it either, aside from have her institutionalized, which we _won't_ do. Medication hasn't made a difference either. We..I'M at the end of my rope with her. And, as I said, I'm not blaming you...but,"Mr. Kramer hesitated and cleaned his glasses on his sweater,"..is it somehow your fault?"

Slappy glared at Amy's father. He wanted to make good on his namesake and slap the yolk out of that bald egg-shaped head of his. But it would be a wasted effort on his part to try to slap the stupid out of the glorified ape before him. Basic language would have to do. "No. I have nothing to do with Amy. You're just a bad parent."

Mr. Kramer felt his face going red as his blood pressure spiked. "Raising children isn't easy, you know."

"My children always behaved for me."Slappy snapped back.

Mr. Kramer could swear he smelled bullshit. "Oh really? I suppose it would make it easier if my children had convenient strings to pull to make them do what I like, but that isn't how human children work. Just so you know."

Slappy furrowed his brows further. "Jack and Rachel are human."

He gave Slappy a skeptical look."And where are these 'children' now?"

"My brother has them." he said with venom in his voice.

"Your brother..?"Mr. Kramer echoed.

"He kidnapped them, then tried to murder me."

His mouth hung open in confusion and horror."Are..are you being serious..? How could a dummy father human children?"

"I adopted them. Jack is twelve and a bit of a handful, but he has _a thing for birds_ that makes him easier to control."Slappy smirked," Rachel is ten and a very obedient daughter, a regular daddy's girl." Slappy's smirk faded. "I doubt my brother will do anything to harm them. He likes to keep his trophies nice and shiny for when he lords them over people. He wouldn't hurt them. He wouldn't dare."

Mr. Kramer didn't miss the way Slappy had started clinching his small fists in the corners of his folded arms, worrying the shirt fabric there.

_The doll was serious._

Slappy suddenly changed in his eyes. He wasn't a creepy demon doll right now. By whatever means he had come to 'adopt' them, this person before him had children, and at that moment Mr. Kramer could only see a worried father.

"Are you sure they're safe? Should we call the police?"he asked without thinking.

"If you'd like to start a human body count, then yes. Let's call the police."Slappy said sarcastically.

"Is he really that bad?"he straightened up on the bed.

"Worse. He stole my share of powers. So, now he's like two of me wrapped in less attractive and less sane packaging. After I recover, I'll take back everything that is mine. _Nobody_ takes what is mine for very long.."

"What about Amy? What about that boy you threw into our basement?" It wasn't lost on the particularly odd nature of the last part of that question.

Slappy switched the position of his crossed legs."He-.._Ray_ regrets what he did. He won't be anymore trouble."

Mr. Kramer scratched the stubble on his chin."So, his name in Ray..? Is he..uhhh...like you?"

Slappy unfolded his legs. "He's a monster, yes."

Mr. Kramer nodded and took a long breath. "Well, alright then. Good talk."He was at his limit of weird for the millennium and it was time for a lie down. He patted Slappy on the knee, much to Slappy's chagrin, then got up and headed out of the room.

"Hey, Chuck."Slappy called after him.

Mr. Kramer stopped and looked at Slappy."Hmm?"

"When will Amy be back?"

"Oh, tomorrow. She just needs to have her neck brace adjusted before she can come home. The old one doesn't fit anymore. As I was saying before, Amy does things like this every three to six months. We have the ER on speed dial."he said with a halfhearted laugh. "You know..before we left this morning, she let me know that this time it would have been much worse if you hadn't been there. Amy actually begged me not to blame you or be angry with you about what happened." Mr. Kramer gave Slappy an exhausted smile."Slappy, from one father to another;Thank you for what you did for my kid." With that he left Slappy sitting in Amy's favorite old chair.

On his way to the living room for a nap on the couch he wondered, bemused,"She never did beg for anything so hard in her life...I guess she really loves that old thing."


	8. Chapter 8

Short curly red hair bounced gaily from shoulder to frilled lacy shoulder as she skipped down the dark corridor. Her black and white pin stripped dress teetered and tottered just below her knees. She skipped right into a large lounge room with subdued lighting, filled with random designer chairs and love seats mingled among varying game tables. A ghostly fog of fragrant smoke wafted in the firmament above the tables and the chessboard ceiling. An old instrumental tune sang from an even older jukebox across the room between two enormous stain glass windows. The glass was dark, deep colors. Shades of indigo,crimson,burgundy, and black. She innocently sauntered up to the jukebox and looked inside. She swayed slowly to the current selection playing. It was some sort of love song. She pressed an electric blue button to flip the pages behind the glass until she located her favorite song. She took a little coin from her dainty black silk glove and slipped it into the time-tarnished coin slot. She pressed hard on the square red glass buttons to select her song; Steve Miller Band: In The Mood.

The selection took five long seconds to change, then started up. Her pretty chocolate brown eyes twinkled as she began to dance to the jaunty tune. Light rarely hit these particular windows except on full moon nights. Like tonight. It cast a lovely aura down on the lone dancers light, freckled skin.

She twirled and danced and threw in a little improvised Charleston. Her painted lips smiled when she noticed a spectator in the doorway.

A tall black shrouded person with shoulders too broad to be a woman stood in the arched doorway. "What did you do to your hair? Why is it red and curly?"

Rachel rolled her eyes and danced over to him. "Oh, lighten up Jack! I always wanted to dye my hair. Don't you think it's pretty?"

"It looks like his."he said in a monotone.

"Really!?"she asked happily as she adjusted a bobbin-pin.

"You are too young for it AND that lipstick." he said pointing an accusing finger at her full lips that were almost the same shade of garnet red as her hair.

She slapped his hand away. "You goodie-goodie! It'd kill you to do anything fun wouldn't it!?"

"He didn't tell you to wear it did he?"he asked softly.

She crossed her arms behind her back and smiled impishly at him. "What if he did?"

"Take it off,now."he said with quiet urgency.

"No! It's really pretty!"she shouted at him.

"You don't understand, Rachel!"he said raising his voice at her as he riffled through his pockets for something to wipe the offending face paint away with.

"You think that, just because he made you older, that you're actually an adult now, but you aren't! You aren't, Jackson! I can do what I like and you can't stop me!"she shouted and pushed him aside as hard as she could. Rachel ran down the dark hall and burst through a pair of dark double doors. "Uncle! Jackson is being mean to me again!"she wailed.

Jackson stood perfectly still at the end on the hall with his hands still in his pockets. His heart felt like it was beating in his throat as he listened.

"Oh, is he back already?"a cool voice asked.

"Yes, and he said he thinks I'm ugly! Why is he so mean to me!?"she bawled.

"There, there my little strawberry.."he soothed. "Jackson. Would you come in here please?"

Jackson knew he had to obey. He walked down the long hall as the next song from the jukebox echoed eerily off the cold empty walls. He stepped into his 'Uncle's' office. Mr. Wood sat in an leather chair across an enormous ornate wood desk. Rachel was perched in his lap with her arms draped around his neck.

"I take it you're done with my request?"he asked wrapping his arms around Rachel's petite body.

"It's done."he responded curtly.

"My, that was fast. Are you sure you got it all?" Mr. Wood twisted a finger in one of the little girl's red curls.

"Yes."

Mr. Wood's pearly teeth glistened from behind his sinister smile."Good work. Take the rest of the day off."

"Uncle!"Rachel protested not wanting her complaint to be ignored.

Mr. Wood groaned."Rachel, you know business comes first."

Rachel leaned back on his lap, but tethered herself to him with her arms draped behind his neck. She gave him her best pout. "You always make time for _her_." Rachel glared at the fair young woman with long straight blonde hair standing in the corner of the room to the right of the desk.

He laughed in his dark charming way,"Yes, you're right, that's true. You see, Kris is my special pet, sweetheart. Sometimes, she needs a little extra training and that can't wait."he spoke patiently to the upset little girl in his lap. "Come here, Kris."he said as he tugged gently on a dark blue velvet leash attached to a thick black choker around Kris's neck.

She obeyed. Her china blue eyes were half lidded and empty behind her delicate eye lashes. Her pale pink lips showed no emotion as she stepped closer to her master. Her long white linen dress clung to and released the curves of her hips like the tide as she moved. She stopped beside his chair and stood with perfect posture from the black silk corset encircling her midsection just below her breasts.

Rachel gave her a poisonous glare. "I could be your special pet! I behave better than she does!"

Jackson bit his tongue hard to keep from shouting or doing anything stupid at that moment.

Mr. Wood smiled broadly at his little niece. "Oh, would you now?"he asked drawing her further into his lap.

"Yes! I love you the most! She's just a big fraud! I was here first! Then you had Jack drag that thing here and all you ever care about is her! We don't play anymore!"she shouted letting loose a torrent of jealous complaints.

Mr. Wood shook his finger at her in a patronizing manner. "That is very rude for you to say,Rachel."

"Don't you love me anymore!?"she cried dramatically and threw herself against his chest.

Mr. Wood made an 'oof!' noise then patted her back."Of course...of course, I love my little strawberry...but I've had a lot of work recently. I don't have the time I used to before we got rid of my awful brother."

"But-but you have time f-for h-h-her!"she sobbed into his shoulder.

Mr. Wood was loosing his patience. "Rachel..I need for you to be my big girl. If you don't you can never be my special pet."

She fiddled with his red satin tie and asked sadly,"Can't you just take some years of my life like you did with Jackson?"

Jackson took three sudden steps forward before the glare of acid green eyes stopped him in his tracks.

"No, I couldn't to that."he said pushing her gently from his chest to look at her tear stained freckled face. He fixed back a loose tendril of her hair back with a bobbin-pen. "Sweet little strawberries should be allowed to ripen naturally in their good time." He kissed her lingering tears away, then caressed her face with the back of his hand.

Jackson thought he'd be sick.

"Forgive me?"he asked her sweetly.

She sniffled. "Okay..."Rachel gave him a short nod.

He suddenly jumped out of his chair with her scooped up in his arms and spun her around. She cried out in laughter and he gave a good hearted laugh too. Then he rocked her in his arms like a baby to the faint tune playing from the jukebox down the hall."I promise we will play together tomorrow, my strawberry."

She smiled happily and gave him a quick peck on the lips."Okay, it's a promise!"

Mr. Wood walked over to Jackson. "Take that depression cowl off when you're inside."he demanded. Mr. Wood looked back down at Rachel in his arms and asked, "Has he always been such a rain cloud?"

Rachel smiled triumphantly up at him, "Yes! He is always raining on everyone's parade!"she said enthusiastically.

Mr. Wood threw his head back and laughed.

Jackson removed his cowl as ordered. His long dark brown hair trickled over his broad shoulders and hung between his shoulder blades. He stood as tall as Mr. Wood but Jackson was of a deeper complexion and had masculine stubble along his upper lip,jaw, and neck. His build was thicker than his 'uncle's', but Jackson's voice was softer and subdued.

He looked at his little sister in the arms of the vile man and wanted nothing more than to snatch her away and run. Run until his heart exploded. Go somewhere that he knew his sister would be safe, but no place like that existed for them now. The only choice he had was to obey his new master. He would do every soul breaking task he asked to preserve his sister. She was still young and didn't understand the true nature of their situation yet. He was truly only two years older than her, or he should be. For her life, he traded eight years of his life. Eight years that could never be reclaimed. Gone,like any innocence he had previously clung to. His eyes began to water then his sister laughed at him.

"Ha! Look Uncle! The rain cloud is dripping!"she teased cruelly.

"Well, maybe you should show him how to stop being such a wet blanket?"Mr. Wood said and passed Rachel into Jackson strong arms.

Rachel blew a wet raspberry in Jackson's face when he took her. "I can rain too!"

Jackson slightly turned his face away from the spray.

Mr. Wood let his hand down hard on his 'nephew's' shoulder and squeezed hard enough to leave bruises. "Jackson, why don't you take her out for some fun around the park? Go play in the arcade and get as much ice-scream as you like. Uncle's treat!"

Jackson had learned not to show any pain he felt. That would only egg him on. So Jackson only nodded.

"You are my SLAVE tonight, Jack!"she cackled and kicked her legs gleefully.

"Good."Mr. Wood said then turned to go back into his office.

Jackson watched Wood go, but his eyes were caught by a set of empty blue eyes staring back at him from behind the desk. He wondered for a moment if his eyes looked that empty too. There was no way...no way they could be so empty as hers.

"Have fun you two!"Mr. Wood called flippantly to the pair behind him as walked back to his desk. He looked back to the doorway and caught a glimpse of Jackson looking at his pet. Jealousy twisted in the pit of his stomach. He snatched up Kris's leash and yanked hard, pulling her frail form over. He caught her body against his and gripped her possessively. "Bye bye." he hissed then shoved Jackson and Rachel out of the doorway with an unseen force, then magicked the doors to slam shut.

Rachel and Jackson stood stunned for a few moments before Rachel broke the silence.

"What do they even do in there?"Rachel asked bitterly.

Jackson held Rachel protectively."If I have anything to do with it, you'll never find out."

She jabbed him in the cheek with her finger,"Fuddy-duddy."


	9. Chapter 9

Ray sat huddled underneath the musty blanket he had brought from DeadHouse. The concrete basement floor was unpleasantly cold beneath him.

The problem with feeding was how alive it made you feel. Ray found it bittersweet that it was so easy to forget what cold felt like, even if it was what he felt the majority of the time.

But being warm again...it felt like love.

**_But it was stolen._**

Ray pulled the blanket closer, trying to hold onto the precious heat. He had escaped his prison, but he was still alone.

What did he expect? He was a monster.

He had mauled the first person to not run screaming when he appeared to them. She even_ helped him_. Then, how did he repay her kindness? He almost murdered her, or even worse, turned her so he could have somebody to share in his misery.

_When had he become like this?_

Ray flinched when he heard the basement door open.

Two sets of footsteps clattered down the wooden stairs.

"Where is he?"a soft voice asked.

"Over in that corner."he heard Slappy say.

"Why can't I turn on the light?"the soft voice asked again.

"Because I said not to,Opie."Slappy snapped back.

"Okay, _Pinocchio_."he heard the offended party say as the footsteps came closer.

"How can you tell where he is anyway? I can't see anything with just this smelly candle."he asked Slappy.

Slappy ignored the question."Stop. He's right here."

"Really? Where? In the furniture?"the oblivious boy asked not a foot away from Ray.

"I'm right here."Ray said just above a whisper beneath his blanket.

Jed jumped and nearly dropped his cinnamon scented candle. "Holy crap!"

Slappy chuckled.

"S-so..you're the guy that put Amy in the hospital?"Jed asked anxiously.

Ray lowered the old blanket from his head so the boy could see him better. He could smell the unease coming off the boy. He was at a loss of words to explain himself.

"He attacked Amy when she was trespassing in his house."Slappy explained.

"Oh..."Jed said softly then half shrugged,"..that sounds like Amy. She's kinda stupid like that." The red headed boy laughed nervously. He looked at Ray in the singular candlelight."So..I uh...brought you some clothes. They're my dad's so they probably won't fit right,but it's better than nothing."he said and held out a pair of navy blue drawstring lounge pants and a pull over with an university symbol on it.

Ray looked at the clothes then back at the giver. "But, why..?"

He quirked a brow at Ray."Uhh...because Slappy said you were naked...? And it's cold down here..?"he answered.

"Don't be rude. Accept the clothes."Slappy commanded Ray impatiently.

He timidly took the clothes and bowed his head in shame."Thank you."

"No problem. I'm Jed, by the way."he said warmly then pointed behind him at the stairs. "There's a bathroom or mudroom...whatever-thing under the stairs and I can bring down some food if you're hungry."he offered. "OH, and watch out for Amy's sewing crap over there."he pointed to the left of the stairs. "She goes berserk if anybody even touches it."he said waving his hands like defensive jazz hands. "She's as bad as Sara with her paintings...only less talented."

Slappy snapped his fingers."Howdy Doody, give him the socks too."

"Yeah,yeah..I wasn't gonna forget.." Jed wrinkled his nose at Slappy then fished a ball of thick socks from his cargo pants pocket. Jed handed over the socks with a boyish grin to Ray. "Let me know if you need something,umm...?"

"Ray...I'm Ray."he said and extended a hand to Jed after shifting the clothes to his other hand.

Jed took it and gave him a brief shake before drawing it back. "Geeze..I can get you some gloves too if you want. Your hands are freezing!"

"No. Thankyou. This is more than enough. It's more generosity than I honestly deserve."Ray replied meekly.

Slappy groaned. He was gonna be sick.

"Well, okay."Jed said feeling awkward. He looked down at the dummy. "Are you coming back upstairs?"

Slappy shook his head.

"Alrighty, see you later."he gave a little wave, then left with the candle lighting his way back to the stairs.

Ray waited until Jed had closed the basement door before rising from his spot. He looked down at Slappy who had his arms crossed. They could both see perfectly in the dark. A perk of being a monster.

Ray looked at Slappy,"The attack wasn't an accident. I meant to harm Amy, or even kill her."Ray said sadly.

"Amy shouldn't have been trespassing."he said with a shrug.

Slappy snatched the balled up socks off the top of the clothes and unrolled them. "Stop worrying about it and wallowing in your own self loathing. Get dressed, Casper."

Ray looked away feeling dejected.

Slappy sighed. "They aren't going to burn you at the stake. Stop moping. They're..."Slappy looked like he was going to vomit but he managed to spit out the word,"_..nice_." He held out the socks to Ray.

Ray sighed. His dead heart felt so very heavy,like a boulder in his chest. He took the socks from the dummy and looked at them and sighed again. "I don't deserve to be here."

"But you are."Slappy said sternly. He put his hands in his jean pockets and turned his back to Ray. "You'll have to live with it and move on."

Ray let the blanket fall to the floor. '_Have to live with it_'? Was that supposed to be some kind of joke?

Ray wasn't sure how to feel about Slappy yet. He began to dress himself and pondered on the stoic doll. Slappy knew how to kill him. It would be simple for him, but instead he had gone out of his way to keep Amy's family from accidentally doing it. Maybe it had something to do with the fact they were both monsters...?

Slappy tapped his foot impatiently. "Hurry up. We need to remove the light bulbs from down here!"

Ray was stirred from his thoughts and quickly resumed clothing himself. "Sorry. I haven't left Dark Falls since 1988 and I haven't been around anyone living in six years, which I spent as a ghost."he said as he slipped on the thick black socks that fit snugly. "Forgive me for being so melancholy. It's a little overwhelming to be in a body again and in a new place." Ray ran both hands through his wavy blonde hair and left them cupped on the back of his neck. "I'm not usually so depressed. I'll try to be better company if you don't kick me out tonight."

Slappy gave a quick glance over his shoulder back at Ray. "Yeah, whatever."he said nonchalantly then pointed out a bulb in the ceiling. "Go get it, Ray."

Ray had a feeling that when Slappy said 'we' before that he meant he would be the one doing the work while Slappy supervised. Honestly, he was fine with that as long as he didn't have to be alone any more. He smiled, feeling cautiously better about everything now."Okay. You're the boss."he said and walked under the nearest rafter then levitated up to it.

Slappy couldn't keep from smiling. _"You're the boss.." _echoed in his head. Nothing got to him like having his ego stoked. While they removed the lights he had to catch himself from accidentally calling Ray 'slave' a few times. Saying that might rub the young watcher the wrong way. As he watched Ray, a thought occurred to him;"What are friends if not slaves you like?"

* * *

The late afternoon sun began to glow orange as it approached the horizon.

Amy hesitated before opening the front door, behind which the peanut gallery awaited her. Amy turned the new doorknob and stepped in. "Heeey...I'm home."she called out nervously.

Jed was sitting in the living room recliner watching tv. He was in the middle of changing the station when she had walked in. Jed burst out laughing at her. "They put you in a dog cone!?"

"It's not a dog cone!"Amy shouted in an octave higher than usual. Her face turned bright pink except for the small splint over the bridge of her nose.

"Oh my god, Amy. It really does look like a dog cone!"Sara chimed in from the kitchen doorway.

"The insurance wouldn't cover a new neck brace,so they had to adjust it with extra parts! It's not a dog cone!"Amy explained as her cheeks turned crimson in embarrassment.

"Hey, she looks like Dug from that movie 'UP'."Dennis added.

"What!?"Amy attempted to look around her and had to involve her whole body to do so."Dennis? Where are you?"she finally had to bend over and crouch like a drawing lamp so she could see him. He was standing not two feet to her left.

Dennis laughed."That is hilarious."

"No it isn't! It's a medical device!"Amy said standing back up and trying to keep a straight face. Amy heard more snickering to her right.

"Do you get good reception?"She heard Slappy ask.

Everybody laughed.

If Amy could blush any more deeply she would. Of course she had more than cosmetic reasons to feel embarrassed with Slappy.

"Now come on everyone, stop teasing Amy."Mr. Kramer said then closed the front door behind him. "It's bad enough that she's already wearing the cone of shame."

"Dad!"Amy whined but he had a little laugh at her expense anyway. This wasn't going to get any less humiliating. She groaned and stormed off to her room, then closed the door to shut out the laughter.

Amy sighed. Cone of shame? Yeah, she guessed that did seem to fit, considering the circumstance by which she came by it.

If she had just listened to Slappy this wouldn't have happened. He wouldn't have come to her rescue and she wouldn't owe him her life. Amy kicked off her shoes and sent them tumbling under her bed. Why was she so damn stubborn? Amy moaned miserably and began to undress. She had bathed and changed her clothes at the hospital,but now that she was home, all she wanted was to put on her favorite flannel pajamas.

_"Hey kid. That's mine."_

Amy shivered. Hearing Slappy's voice in the hall triggered her memory. The way Slappy had said those words had left impression on her. Her heart suddenly fluttered in her chest as she worked her shirt down her shoulders,stretching out the collar.

_"That's mine."_

Amy bit her bottom lip. Goddammit...she wasn't his property! It felt like her whole body was blushing despite her mental protests. She inched her shirt down her arms, avoiding her bandaged forearm.

_"Mine ."_

Dammit! She couldn't deny it..."Stupid sexy Slappy.."she cursed under her breath and forced the shirt down her hips along with her jeans, letting them fall to the floor and pool around her ankles.

"You really don't see me over here do you?"Slappy asked.

Amy screamed and nearly tripped on her own clothes."How did you get in here!?"she shrieked covering her bare chest.

He had walked in with her, but Amy must have not realized. "I enjoy a strip as much as the next evil dummy, but I usually prefer my women with breasts and some talent at it."

Amy fumed in her cone. Covering her breasts with one arm she groped around on her bed for her quilt with the other. "Get outta here!"she shouted still unable to spot Slappy.

"To your left."he said dryly.

Amy found it per his directions and snatched it up, covering her front."Dammit Slappy,where are you?!"

"Pink lace panties? I honestly didn't think you the type."he said sounding amused.

Amy let out a frustrated squeal and wrapped the blanket around her. She could hear the little creep, but she couldn't tell from where.

"I also prefer blondes, just so you know." Slappy commented as he walked past Amy then stood up on the antique chair at the window. "Over here, fido."

Amy turned around and spotted him on the chair. "Why didn't you say something sooner!?"

"Because you have a problem with listening." he said sharply.

That stung. Amy blushed and grumbled something under her breath.

Slappy raised a brow."What was that? I couldn't hear you."he inquired,even though he knew what she had said.

"_I'm sorry_."she grumbled.

Slappy gave her a smug look. "And?"

"And you gave me whiplash."Amy glowered at him.

Slappy glared back at her.

Amy sighed and rolled her eyes. "AND, I should have listened to you."

"That's a good slave. I would toss you a treat if I had one."

"I'm not your slave or your dog."she responded quickly in a dead pan tone. Amy looked at him sheepishly,"Thank you for saving me, anyway."

Slappy crossed his arms."You owe me."

"Yeah,yeah."Amy said flippantly."Now turn around so I can get dressed."

Slappy obliged and turned around. Then he turned back around when Amy wasn't looking.

"What happened to Ray?"she asked as she stepped to her dresser and changed into a pair of lacy emerald-green underwear."I still feel a little bad for him. He looked so sad."

"He's in the basement."he said enjoying the show.

"What!?"Amy shrieked pulling an over sized flannel top and a pair of shorts out of a drawer."Does anyone else know?"

"Yes. Your whole family knows about him." Slappy watched the oblivious girl step into a pair of dark blue shorts and pull them up over her fresh undies. "I've got hand it to you Amy. You've made yourself such a pain in the ass that your family has no problem with having a blood thirsty monster and a possessed dummy in the house. I'm proud of you."he said grinning wickedly.

Amy adjusted her shorts to fit her curves more favorably."I take it that they were complaining about me again.."she sighed.

What Amy lacked in breasts she made up for in ass. He knew he shouldn't look, but back when he was new and still serving his master, a girl like Amy would be getting married off by now. It wasn't like looking at her did much to him anyway,being a dummy and all. But even without flesh he could still appreciate the female form. "Chuck and I had a conversation this morning."

"Sounds fun." Amy said sarcastically. She slipped her arms into the over sized purple and blue plaid flannel top. "You know my dad's name is Robert, right?"she said as she buttoned up.

"I don't care." Slappy replied watching her modest chest disappear from view under the garment. He turned back around just before Amy could catch him.

"Ya' want to go check on Ray?"Amy asked and tossed her quilt back on her bed.

"You can go if you like. You have my permission."he replied with a wave over his shoulder.

"You can turn around now,by the way."she told him and let his 'permission' comment slide. "I don't want to go down there without you."she confessed.

"Really?"Slappy was a little surprised by her forward attitude." Is that caution? Your father said you were a risk taker."

"I nearly died! Gimme a break."she said trying to fix her hair in a more comfortable way. "I also can't see my feet so I need help getting down the stairs."

Slappy hopped off the chair and walked past her."Sure, I'll help you down the stairs. You'll practically go flying down them."

"Ha ha. Funny."she said sarcastically. Amy realized she couldn't tell where he was anymore."Crap. Wait. I can't see you now. Where'd you go?"

Slappy whistled from the hall."Should I get you a leash?"

"That isn't funny."Amy said following him out of her room.

"I wasn't joking."he responded.

Amy smiled at her dummy,although he didn't see.

Slappy opened the door to the basement and headed down the stairs with his hands in his pockets.

"Okay..I just gotta find the banister.."she said feeling the wall and being careful not to step off the landing.

"Further down."Slappy called up to her.

Amy made a frustrated noise then located it.

She started down then Slappy yelled at her again."Close the door behind you!"

She did so begrudgingly, then took five minutes to go down the thirteen stairs if you counted the landing.

"Nice of you to join us."Slappy said from a big orange couch. The entire basement had been rearranged. Boxes and tubs were neatly arranged against one wall and all the old furniture the Kramers hadn't had the heart to give away just yet hand been uncovered and set up to make it look more like a bedroom. The only light down here was from tea light candles in votives sprinkled around the basement and an old rabbit ears television she couldn't believe still worked.

Ray stood up from the couch an gave her a little wave. "Hey."

She was nervous about seeing him again. He had nearly killed her after all. But..

.._dammit, he looked even cuter in the candle light_.

It seemed she had a thing for blondes too. "Hey. I like what you did with the place."she said trying to act cool.

"Thanks."Ray said apprehensively and rubbed the back of his neck. "Slappy and I worked on it all day. I hope your family won't mind."

One look with those baby blues and nobody would give a crap what the hell he did.

Amy laughed nervously,"Naaaahh...seriously, this looks great. Fire hazard and all."she said putting her hands on her hips.

Rays expression turned sad."I'm sorry I hurt you, Amy."Ray said addressing the elephant in the room.

Amy blushed and fumbled for graceful words,"What? Oh_ that_? Not-not a big deal, don't worry about it."she said looking away. _"That was smooth,"_she thought,_"like sand paper."_

He knew she was only sparing his feelings. "Are sure you're okay?"he asked taking a step forward.

Amy took a step back without thinking.

Ray stopped. She was scared of him. He stepped back and looked away disheartened.

"Wait,Ray."she said quickly and forced herself to close the steps between them."Look, see? I'm okay."Amy said then initiated the most awkward hug in history.

Slappy had to look away. It was too painful to watch.

Ray had to tilt his head awkwardly to avoid her neck brace and just sort of guess where to put his hands. He ended up kinda just patting her on the back in an odd position. "This thing really gets in the way huh?"Ray joked trying to make the moment less awkward.

Amy wanted to die. She backed away from Ray, releasing him from the embarrassing moment she had created. "Yeah, you have no idea."

Then there was the uncomfortable silence that followed.

The t.v. behind them was fuzzy but the sound was good as a news anchor welcomed the viewers to the nine o' clock news.

"So...how does the new body feel?"Amy asked in an attempt to salvage the moment.

Ray laughed nervously."It's good. Yeah, everything is in working order. Thanks for that. And sorry.."he said tapping at his nose," about that. Does it hurt?"

"Nope! The hospital gave me some handy dandy painkillers!"she said giving Ray a thumbs up.

He smiled,"Okay. That makes me feel better."

"Me too."Amy joked.

"For the love of god,"Slappy said fed up,"Cut that out and get over here so we can talk."

Ray offered Amy his spot on the couch beside Slappy, but she opted for a floral upholstered chair instead.

"What's up?"Amy asked as she settled in.

"While you were away I informed Ray about the situation I have found myself in. In light of what I've told you, it has become apparent that I have no option but to ask you for help."Slappy said to them. "It pains me say it, but I can't do this without some assistance. So, under the assumption that you will agree, I will go straight to telling you my plan."he said leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. He had opened his mouth to speak but something on the news stole his tongue.

"Authorities have issued an Amber alert for sixteen year old twin sisters Lindy and Kris Powell."the news anchor with short blonde hair said beside a picture of the two girls on the screen. One had shoulder length blonde hair and the other had long blonde hair down to the small of her back. Except for their hair, they were identical and both very pretty.

"Lindy..?"Slappy said in just above a whisper.

Amy hadn't seen that expression on Slappy before. When she first took up ventriloquism, Amy had thought there were only a few emotions you could show with the doll, but after living with Dennis and Slappy she was stunned by how much the slightest movement of the brow,mouth,or eyes cold say so much.

She couldn't believe it. Slappy looked sad.


	10. Chapter 10

Amy was confusing herself. She didn't like the uninvited pang in her stomach she felt after seeing the way Slappy had reacted to girls on the television. "Who are _they_?"

Slappy straightened his back with his hands planted firmly on his knees. "It doesn't matter. I can't do anything for either of them even if I wanted to."he said pragmatically then rose to his feet, naturally taking on a dominant stance. His intense ultramarine gaze fixated on the television, looking but not seeing, in deep thought.

Amy grimaced, unsatisfied with his answer. She crossed her arms and legs and gave an annoyed huff.

Slappy didn't notice her at all.

Ray noticed. He wondered if Amy might have a thing for Slappy or if she was she just annoyed with him? The thought of Amy and Slappy as a couple made him unable to hold back a grin. He diverted his focus to some tea lights across the room. He didn't want to get caught looking so amused.

Slappy shut the tv off and plunged the room further in darkness.

It had been dark when Amy first came down to the basement, but with TV off it became much darker. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the lesser, but steady and calm, candle light.

"My powers come from raw human emotions."Slappy spoke as he stood at the TV with his back to them. He cautiously began to divulge information he commonly kept guarded. "Negative ones to be specific."

Ray had a nervous tick where if he felt uncomfortable he would run his fingers through his hair. It was why he had started wearing a hat. Later on it became a necessity, but at the moment he missed it as he compulsively passed both hands through his waves of gold.

"If that's the case then your batteries should fully charge after a week of staying at my house."Amy bitterly half-joked.

Slappy wasn't amused. "Humans feel emotions on much deeper more potent level than most monsters. Primarily demonic entities like me."he slowly turned around.

He had her attention now. She hadn't considered Slappy for a demon. Maybe back when they first met and he was ruining her life, sure. But after finding him broken and gross on her doorstep, he seemed to have changed. Or maybe she was different? She hadn't considered that either...

"Just being upset isn't enough. We have to push humans to the very edge of hopelessness, rage, desperation, or sanity before we can reap our rewards."

Amy's hazel-green eyes seemed to flicker in the candle light. "Well, I'm not helping you do that to me or anybody else, so you better have a plan B."

"It would be problematic to try it with you. Simple minds tend to repulse evil. But the rest of your family is ripe with concealed pain that I could feed off of."

Amy was quickly on her feet with her fist balled up at her sides."Hey! Are you calling me stupid and my family miserable!?"

Slappy arched a brow at her."And here I was thinking that thing would enhance your ability to hear."

"Those are fighting words,you know!"she yelled rolling up her plaid sleeves.

"Sit down, Amy."Slappy commanded. "I'm not going to feed off your family."

"I know you're not!" she replied with threatening bravado.

Slappy slipped his hands in his pockets."It will self destruct all on its own, soon enough."

She gave him a perplexed look. "The hell are you talking about?"

"That is beside the point. The point I'm trying to make is that just under the surface your family is like a banquet of negative emotions waiting to be exploited and fed on, but for some reason I'm not hungry."

Amy rubbed her shoulder."Well, that's good."

Slappy glared at her."No, it is not. It means I can not feed. If I do not feed, I can not replenish my powers."

She placed a hand on her hip and tilted her head,"What kind of powers did you have anyhow? I don't remember you using any the last time you were here. You just chased me around laughing and tearing shit up."

Slappy coughed. That wasn't _quite_ how he remembered it, but it was close enough for him to feel embarrassed."Only fools go in with guns blazing. You were a child. I had to build up to them, but I didn't get a chance."he said ruefully.

Amy smiled. "You didn't expect Dennis to come to life too and smash your head in."she mused aloud.

Slappy stared right at her."Life is full of unexpected annoyances."

Amy stared back and furrowed her brow at him."Agreed."

"Are you sure you lost all your powers? You have a hell of a throwing arm."Ray asked and rubbed his temple.

Slappy turned to Ray,"I was thinking about that, too. It has something to do with Amy. I can't deny that."

"Me? What did I do?"she asked innocently.

He turned his head to her."You made me say the words. My physical form changed after that. I believe that is proof enough."

"Okay,but what does it mean?"she asked straightening her shorts.

"I don't know. I have theories, but none of them I like."he answered honestly.

"Care to share any?"she asked.

"No."he responded.

She sighed,"Surprising."

Ray adjusted on the couch."So, what is your plan, Slappy?"

He nodded at Ray."I have to use alternate means to gain power. I know a man in Weston, Massachusetts that would know where I can find a source."

Amy straightened her shirt."Holy crap. Cecil,Pennsylvania to Weston,Massachusetts isn't exactly a day trip,Slappy."

"I know." he said turning to her," We will need funds and a vehicle. I don't ride buses."

She arched a brow at him."Why are you looking at me? I don't even have a drivers permit yet, let alone a car or enough money in my savings for hotels."

Ray stood up from the couch and stretched his arms in a bow above him. It raised the pull-over he was wearing high enough for Amy to get a peek at his lower midsection. "I may be able to get a vehicle." He ran both his hands through his hair. "But I'll have to go back to what's left of Dark Falls to get it.."

Amy looked excited."Awesome! Okay, if you can do that then I'll get my learners permit and start practicing driving."

Slappy looked to Amy."Amy,give me your savings."

"Sure, let me just get it out of my pocket."she pantomimed reaching into a pocket then presented him with the middle finger. "There ya' go."

Ray suppressed a laugh.

Slappy massaged his temples."Goddammit Amy."

Amy folded her arms over her chest."I worked hard to make what I've got! Besides! Like I said, it isn't enough for what you want to do anyway."

"Ask your parents for a loan."Slappy said and unbuttoned his shirt.

Spittle flecks spattered as she expressed her amused disdain,"Pfffttt! As if they would! They already took out a second mortgage just to pay for all of the traveling Sara does for art shows and Jed's film making crap. There's _no way in hell_ they're gonna help us." Amy sighed,"They'll just tell me to get a job."

"That isn't a very practical choice. We're under a time budget and need money fast."Slappy looked thoughtful for a moment and said the first random thought that popped in his mind,"_Maybe we could could sell your virginity.._"

"WHAT!?"Amy and Ray shrieked at once. Amy's face went hot and Ray actually glared at him.

Slappy looked away and cleared his throat awkwardly. He probably shouldn't have blurted that out..

"WHAT THE FUCK-_NO_!"Amy yelled, her face a furious red. "There's no way my first time is going to be with some creepy old guy, you little shit!"

Slappy glared at her,"You're right, it's a bad idea. You're too mouthy and ill tempered to fetch a high enough price."

Amy let out primal yell and tried to kick Slappy who narrowly dodged her.

Slappy avoided Amy's flurry of aimless kicks as she blindly tried to hit her mark.

"They'd still pay more for me than anyone ever paid for you, ya' defective Howdy-Doodie!"she raged.

Ray pushed off from the floor and floated to the ceiling. Once he was out of range of Amy's fury he watched as Slappy calmly keep moving in her blind spot as she attacked him.

Five minutes later she had exhausted herself. "You... are such.._a jerk_..,"she said panting,"..you know that?"

"Are you done?"Slappy asked in his snooty way from directly behind her.

Amy seized her chance and did a 'mule' kick behind her.

Slappy surprised both Amy and Ray when he grabbed her ankle with both hands,then before Amy had a chance to look surprised, he slung her on the empty couch with little effort.

It took a moment for Amy to register what happened. She lay wide-eyed and confused staring up at the ceiling from the couch.

Ray stared down at her from between two rafters. "Are..you okay?"

"What just happened?"she asked him wide eyed and blinking.

Slappy crossed his arms over his chest. "If you're done with your outburst, I'd like for you to call your friend Margo. I remember her father owned an event house. Ask her for a job. Seems there's no other choice."

She crossed her arms and legs while on the couch."Fine. That's better than your shitty first idea." Amy still couldn't see Slappy, but she was sure he was smirking.

Slappy slipped off his shirt and sauntered to the laundry room on the dark side of the basement."Good. I'll leave it to you, then."he said as he disappeared into the shadows.

Ray drifted down silently to Amy's side. "You almost had him."he said as he offered his hand to her.

Amy tried to stay mad, but looking at Ray and realizing what she must have looked like, she couldn't keep a straight face. Amy laughed then Ray did too. She took his hand and he helped her to her feet."I bet I did.."she said looking at the floor feeling like a goof.

Ray twined his fingers in hers and she felt her heart give a flutter. "You did alright."he said and gently squeezed her warm hand that felt comfortable in his. "Let me show you something." he said and gently drew her to the left side of the basement. "Just to let you know, we were really careful with everything, so I hope you don't mind."

Amy hadn't the foggiest idea what Ray was going on about. All she could register was that she was holding his hand. In the dark. Feeling a tiny amount of panic she recalled that she had never held a boy's hand before. Well, that wasn't completely true. She had held Slappy's when he made the oath, but that didn't count.

"Oh, you can't see can you?"Ray said then reached out to a tea light back by the television. It floated across the room to his open hand.

"How did you do that?"Amy gawked in fascination.

Ray looked to the floor suddenly shy."It's nothing, I can only move small things. It's not a big deal."

Amy smiled and squeezed his hand. "No, that's awesome, Ray."

Ray felt his undead heart pick up a beat. He cleared his throat then held the light up to illuminate the area with an amber glow.

Amy gasped. She couldn't believe it. She stood in shock and awe at the sight before her.

_**They moved her stuff.**_

"Do you like it?"he asked nervously.

Thank whatever gods there were that he was so cute. If_ anyone else_ had done this there would fire and brimstone. There would be wailing and gnashing of teeth. There would be pain and sorrow of biblical proportions if it had been ANYONE else.

"It looks great!"she said through gritted teeth and feigned excitement.

Ray sighed in relief,"Good, I was worried you'd be upset. Your brother said you would go berserk if anybody touched it."he said with a jovial laugh.

"What? No..._that's nuts_! Ha...yeah, this..this is.."Amy looked at the orderly, clean, and now unfamiliar sewing table and clothing racks and bins. "This is great."

Ray was happy with her response and wanted to show her how they had organized everything. "Look, we put all your thread and bobbins in here."

Slappy listened absently from the other side of the basement.

He was trying to put her out of his mind, but whatever magic he had brought upon himself after making the vow to Amy made it impossible.

She had looked older in the picture. A beautiful young woman. Both of them were. He felt real regret for the first time in for as long as he could remember. Why had he screwed everything up with them? When the words were spoken, Kris had bound both he and his brother to her, but he never considered himself to belonging to Kris.

Slappy closed his eyes and grasped at his chest that oddly ached.

He belonged to Lindy. Lindy had loved him. No one else had ever been so careful or kind to him. Even before the words had been spoken, he was still aware of being with her. Her jokes were actually funny. She spoke kindly to him. And she had an amusing mean streak too. Lindy had pulled him out of a dumpster,gave him a new name, and taken him home to take care of for gods sake.

Then why did he ruin things? Sure, he couldn't stand Kris, but it was a small price to pay to be with Lindy. Did his brother's 'death' really affect him that much? The donkey got what was coming to him. So then, why did he drive her away by acting like an ass himself? He had even driven her to tricking him and putting him back to sleep so she could be rid of him.

Why did he feel this way? Why did he feel at all?

It was nothing but a nuisance.

Slappy tossed his shirt and jeans in the white laundry hamper he had written his name on in calligraphy. He willed all thoughts of Lindy to the back of his mind then returned to his new companions, wearing only his boxer briefs and black undershirt.

"Amy,I have a project for you."he said as he walked to a thin filing cabinet against the wall next to her cutting table. He yanked open the bottom drawer and sorted through pattern packets and selected five. He handed them over to her and nudged the drawer closed with his foot."Make these for me."

"Seriously?"she said placing her hands on her hips,"Can't you say please?"

"You were going to make clothes for me as it were, were you not?"Slappy asked patiently.

Amy groaned. Of course she was. She'd been dieing to have a dummy to dress. "Fine. Hand them over." Amy held her hand out to the right of Slappy.

"I'm over here." he said annoyed.

"I don't know where '_here_' is! Just stick it in my hand!"she yelled flustered.

Ray chuckled. "You two argue like an old married couple."

"Never!"they both yelled in sync.

Slappy shoved the patterns in Amy's hand. "Look them over and I'll give you my material recommendations in the morning." He turned and strode towards the stairs. "I'm going to bed."

Amy stuck her tongue out at Slappy behind his back as he went up the stairs.

When the door closed Ray sighed. "I was kind of hoping he would sleep down here."

"Yeah? Me too." Amy said perturbed. She wasn't looking forward to being tenderized in her sleep. She still had that bruise on her side...

"I don't suppose _you_ would sleep with me tonight?" Ray asked.


	11. Chapter 11

Amy felt herself blush all the way down to her toes. "Y-you want me to sleep with you?"

Ray's eyes went wide,"I-I didn't mean-!"

Amy laughed nervously."Tempting offer, but not this time."she said shuffling the pattern packets in her hands.

Ray ran his hand through his hair,"I'm sorry,'he groaned,"I really didn't mean it that way."

Amy turned around to her cutting table and laid out her patterns."I know you didn't. It's okay."

Ray sighed and slipped his hands in the baggy pull-overs pockets. He must be more exhausted than he thought to say something so embarrassing. "Maybe sleep is a good idea.."

"I'll stay."Amy said in a less confident voice than she intended.

Ray stared at her back in surprise. "Huh?"

Amy kept her back to him as she took a notebook out of a large thin drawer under the cutting table. "I won't sleep with you, but I'll stay until you fall asleep if you'd like." She pulled a pen from the spine and turned to a blank page. The poor guy probably didn't want to be alone. He had to be desperate for companionship. He was willing to to be with Slappy, afterall.

Ray looked at the floor and smiled. It was very kind of her to offer, if not a little sexy considering he could smell her faint arousal. "Thank you. I'd like that."

"No problem."Amy said and started writing in her notebook. The candlelight was much more adequate than she had though it would be. Too bad it also made her feel a little romantic. Amy blushed at the very word.

Romantic, Amy Kramer was not, and yet here she was alone with a guy she found very attractive.

Ray could hear her heart beat quicken. It had been a long time since he'd had any company, and even longer since he'd been with a girl.

Not since Amanda, but even then he never had a chance to get her alone like this.

His heart ached thinking of Amanda again. His favorite times with her were when they were playing softball with all the other kids. She had been fairly terrible at softball, but playing with her before everything went wrong was so enjoyable. He wished he could see her again to thank her for setting everyone free finally.

He sighed and stared at the shifting shadows on the floor. Thinking of her now was only making him feel lonely.

_But Amy is here._

He looked up. She was right in front of him, alive and warm. Looking at her made him feel better. She was one of those people. You meet them and then it's like they've always been there. Maybe he was wrong about that and it was just her blood in his veins making her feel so familiar. He didn't care. Ray needed her closer to him and drive away the cold loneliness trying to reclaim him.

He slipped closer to her and placed a hand into the curve of her waist, then reached around to take one of the packets Slappy had left for her with the other. He felt a certain masculine satisfaction when she shivered under his touch. "Are you okay? he asked innocently.

Amy swallowed hard even though her mouth had gone dry. "Your hand is a little cold, that's all."

He smiled. She was lying. Pheromones were trickling off her. "Sorry." His hand contoured to her curve then gave a faint squeeze before he removed it. He held the packet to her,"Could you make one of these for me too?"

Her and her big mouth. Amy immediately missed his cool touch after it left her. She couldn't halt the thought of what it might feel like on her bare skin. It took her a few seconds to sober up and realize what he was holding. "A suit?"she asked peeking out of her haze.

"I know it's a lot to ask, but it doesn't have to be this traditional."he said pointing at the illustration on the front he liked best.

Amy bit her bottom lip and looked away sheepishly."I'm not sure I'm good enough to make a complete full sized suit yet. I mostly just do a lot of mending on the side for cash."

Even with all the boo-boos Amy was still girl-next-door cute. Ray set down the packet then took her warm,almost hot,hands in his. "I looked at your work earlier when we moved your things. Slappy and I both agree they are very good."

Amy gripped his hands tighter at the mention of the dummy."Slappy said that!?"

"Don't let him know I told you."he said grinning. "I'm sure you'll do great."

Amy swallowed nervously again. She couldn't say she was as confident as he was. What if she just made a big mess of it? She didn't want to disappoint him. It would be better to tell him no now. She glanced up in his pale blue eyes.

_OH GODDAMMIT._

"Okay,I guess I can try, but I'll need your measurements."she blurted out. Amy looked at the floor and mentally cursed herself. This was unfair! He had no business being so cute!

Ray stepped back and removed his pullover. "Sure."

Ray was making her light headed again. Amy leaned heavily against the table. His half naked body wasn't overly muscular or skinny. Lean was the word she would use. The candlelight bathed his pale skin in warm hues and she nearly fainted when he pulled the drawstring on the over-sized pants hanging in his hips. "_W-wait_!"she blathered and flailed almost falling over.

He looked at her,"Is something wrong?"_ He knew what was wrong._

Amy held her hands up in a defensive way and waved them,"N-no..it's just that y-you d-don't have to get naked." He her heart was racing at a dizzying speed. She could feel herself begin to sweat,despite the chill in the basement.

Ray knew he was being awful by making her squirm like this. Maybe it was the demon in him that was loving this so much? He couldn't give up the game just yet, though. Ray held the baggy sweat pants up with one hand and smiled at her. "It's isn't like you haven't seen me naked before."he said huskily.

She adverted her eyes and giggled nervously remembering the day before. "Yeah..."

He grinned wickedly when she looked away. This was too much fun and her scent was intoxicating. How far _could_ he push her..?

"You won't be able to get correct measurements with these baggy clothes on."he reasoned.

Amy squirmed in her own skin with indecision. She could get the measurements just fine. He didn't have to take it off...but it wasn't like she wasn't tempted...

Ray chuckled deep in his chest,"If it makes you feel better,"he said and turned his back to her,"I'll turn around." When he felt her eyes on him again, he let go of the pants and let gravity do it's thing.

Amy forgot to breathe. She had never really looked at guys that much, not many interested her. In fact, she hated most guys. She found them annoying with all their machismo and condescending attitude towards anybody with the slightest amount of femininity. All she wanted to do was punch them in the face repeatedly. She knew not all guys were like that, but she was in high school and the former made up the majority of her experience.

But Ray was different. She couldn't find a logical reason to be so attracted to him beside sex appeal. It was especially obvious with Ray standing not six feet away stark naked and ridiculously handsome in the warm glow of controlled flame. She picked up her measuring ribbon and notebook with trembling hands. She was so nervous she fumbled her pen and it fell clattering to the floor.

Ray glanced over his shoulder at her. She was on her hands and knees uttering curses under her breath, feeling around blindly on the floor for something. That ridiculous neck brace was really becoming a problem. "Did you loose something?"

"I dropped my pen!"she squeaked out and shut her eyes.

Ray turned around and crouched down beside her. He leisurely picked up the pen that had rolled behind her then caught her wrist and placed it in her trembling palm.

Amy opened her eyes and saw the pen in her hand, then Ray's hand encircling her wrist. Her gaze followed his arm, to his knee, and beyond that she saw his nude torso. She yelped and shut her eyes. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to look!"she shrieked as her face burned with embarrassment.

Ray laughed and cupped her hot cheek in his hand. "It's okay Amy. I don't mind if you look."

His cold hand felt so good against her burning face. She shyly pressed further into it.

"I'm-I'm sorry,this is so embarrassing. I'm acting really stupid. It's just that honestly, I'm not usually attracted to guys!"she confessed.

"Oh."he said in revelation and removed his hand.

"Or girls!"she added for clarification.

"Oh."he said with a small chuckle.

"I'm new to this feeling! Have pity and don't tease me!" Amy sat back on her knees and pouted.

"I'm sorry." Ray sat down Indian style in front of her and folded his arms over his lap. He supposed he had enough fun now. He did feel a bit guilty for upsetting her, but it had satisfied a part of him he hadn't realized was hungry.

"What the hell are you anyway? A vampire? Succubus? Zombie? What?"she asked feeling foolish.

"A succubus is a girl demon. So,no on that one." He leaned forward and took her measuring ribbon from her hand. "I'm not sure what subset of monster I am, but I think it's kind of like Slappy in that it's demonic. I have the ability to hurt if I wanted to." he said as he drew the silken fabric though his fingers. He raised his eyes to hers as he felt her staring. He allowed a small amount of dark aura from within him to manifest itself.

Amy looked at him, worried she had just put her foot in her mouth. Then he looked up at her and the flee instinct kicked up in horror. His pale blue eyes had changed to deep red and his iris burned like hot embers behind twists of gold hair. He smirked at her broadly enough for her to see his black gums and white teeth with a silver sheen. His canines and bicuspids looked more elongated than normal and very sharp.

"Give me your hand."he purred.

Amy hesitated trying to fight the urge to do it, but a little voice in the back of her mind reminded her that Ray wasn't going to hurt her. Not if he felt like dealing with Slappy. She left go of her reservations and reached out to him.

He grasped the top of her hand and turned it over,wrist up. "Watch." he said a he drew it to his mouth. The distinct musk of panic sprang form her. It gave him a perverse,aggressive jolt of pleasure. His grip tightened and he gave her wrist a long languid lick with his black velvety tongue.

Amy was scared. Scared stiff. This was still Ray right? Did she just screw up again? Was she going to have to rely on Slappy to save her again? Would he even bother? Ray's cold tongue left her wrist tingling, feeling both warm and cooled at the same time. Amy bit her lower lip and shut her eyes.

"Look."he breathed roughly against her wrist.

She tentatively opened her eyes and watched as he gave her a pleased smile then sank his teeth into her wrist.

Every muscle in her body tightened. Her breath caught in her chest and she tried to pull away,but his grip was solid and he held her in place. After a few seconds a mix of excitement and fear mingled in her blood stream as his tongue worked against her skin as he sucked. Ray's mouth made little wet noises like waves lapping at a shore as he indulged in her. The sensation was so odd and so pleasantly numbing, that she didn't know whether to scream or to give him more to bite. She vaguely registered saying his name before he finally stopped. She watched as his teeth slid out of her skin and beads of blood pilled at the surface. Beyond that she didn't bleed. Ray kissed away the remaining droplets, revealing what looked like only fine,pink scratches.

"Did it hurt?" he asked, his voice heavy and rasping.

Amy looked up from marveling at her wrist to find he had changed back. His pale blue eyes were glazed over and dilated. His demeanor looked as though he were drugged. She glanced back at her wrist then to him. "No..but it kinda tingles."she manged to say.

Ray relaxed and without thinking sprawled back on his elbows and is head lulled back, completely revealing himself. "G-good, I can still make it not hurt." he panted out as he tried to catch his breath.

Amy stared wide-eyed at his erection for longer than she should have and wondered how something that size was supposed to fit in a girl..

"Well okay.." Amy glanced around and saw his pullover laying nearby and she snatched it up. She had a flashback to when she would play ring toss at the fair as she decided on how hard she should toss the shirt to cover him.

She tossed too hard and it landed over his chest and face.

Ray was coming to his senses. He had let out more of his darker nature than he had thought.

Her blood rushed through him again. Hot, vivid, and exciting. _It felt amazing._ He had only ever fed on someone when they had been in a state of terror before hand. It seemed that mood affected the taste and feel of blood during a feeding, he decided.

Suddenly fabric fell over him. It took him a fumbling moment to sit back up fully and remove the garment. It fell in his lap then he picked it up. His pullover? He looked at Amy and she looked away from him quickly. He looked down. "Oh my god." He covered himself up and blushed furiously. "That wasn't supposed to happen!"he cried aghast. "Oh god, you must think I'm a pervert now."

"Pretty much."she said with a laugh but was totally serious.

He covered his face with his hands and groaned miserably."I'm sorry, that has never happened before."

Amy examined her wrist again smirking."Okay. Sure."

"I should have just gone to bed."he said with a sigh. His groin hurt with strain. He hadn't had this happen to him in a looong time either. Hell,he almost forgot he could get hard. He groaned then tried to stand only to fall back down on his ass.

Amy saw him struggling and awkward.

He was definitely Ray again.

She smiled,"Come on, I'll help." Amy rose halfway to her feet then fumbled and fell over on top of him.

He caught her but he was still too drunk on her blood to hold them both up.

So there they were, both laid out on the floor together.

"Oh yeah...blood loss.."Amy murmured dizzily. "I'm just...gonna lay here..a bit..."

"Sorry...I didn't think any of this through."he apologized as the blood began to metabolize, slowly sobering him. He couldn't help but breathlessly smile forgoing the circumstance. The feel of her warm body against him made him feel alive.

He knew he hadn't pulled too much of her blood and she was safe, so he wrapped his arms around her, gratifying himself in her presence.  
They lay there like that for a span until Ray felt strong enough to lift her. He used his knee to part her legs to either side of his hips. He ran a hand over her shoulders and the other down her to grasp her ass. He held her firmly against him as he rose in the air, levitating in a reclined position a few feet off the ground. He really hated that damn dog cone looking neck brace on her. "Amy?"he said gently jostling her.

"Hrm..?"she replied despondently. She had drifted off at some point and found herself too comfortable and groggy to give a proper response.

"Can I take off your neck brace?"he asked.

"No...Probably not...Okay, yeah go ahead."she responded abstractly.

Ray quirked a brow."Okay..."he decided he shouldn't, not until she was laying down anyway. He looked to the couch and floated them over to it. He lay them down then reached to the space between their hips and pulled away the pullover that separated them. He bunched it up and used it as a make-shift pillow. He closed his eyes and moaned softly in his chest when she settled herself against him. He carefully,but quickly removed the obnoxious brace and dropped it to the floor. Amy gave a brief moan of discomfort, then he cupped his hand around the back of her neck and rubbed small circles with his thumb.

"Hmmm.."she relaxed and positioned her arms at his sides, her hands cupping the backs of his arms.

He closed his eyes again and turned his head,resting his cheek against her forehead.

"You have a heartbeat, you know."Amy breathed against his throat.

Ray felt her warm breath and lips brush against his Adams apple, making him harden again. "It's a bit lazy." he said trying to ignore his arousal.

There was only lace and worn blue flannel fabric between her and his stiffening. She was starting to get used to these awkward moments with Ray. She smiled into his neck. "You're a bit perverted. Admit it."

There was no hiding it. He trailed his hands down her spine and gripped her ass with both hands then gave his hips a gentle thrust against her."I guess I am a bit."

It sort of hurt the way it poked against her, but at the same time she found it very flattering. She felt an urge to kiss his throat, but she didn't. Amy squeezed his triceps and nuzzled further into his neck, making his chin tilt up, and spoke softly just below his ear,"I'm still light headed...I'm only staying until that clears up, so don't get any ideas." She lifted and wiggled her hips enough to position him in a less awkward way.

He squeezed her ass again and was rewarded with a sexy little whimper from her. He laughed warmly and rolled his hips to further nestle his erection between their bodies. "Whatever you want, Amy."

The bastard. Amy had an urge to bite him back for once, but knew that would only escalate things. "I want to sleep, ya' perv.."she said with laughter in her voice.

He relented. Ray moved his hands from her rear up to her back. Under her flannel top, he rested his palms on her bare skin. He breathed in the scent of her hair and closed his eyes again,this time to rest contently with her.

Amy had never slept with another person before. Well, except for Slappy, sort of. He had literally kicked her out of bed in his sleep on their first night. She still had the bruise to prove it. The thought passively occurred to her that maybe Slappy might be mad if he found them like this. She dismissed it, since he treated her more like a disobedient pet than a partner. She sighed contently. Aside from all the awkward, laying with him was really nice...and comforting. Amy and Ray slipped off into dreamless sleep.

* * *

Slappy stood at the top of the dark stairs. He looked down at Ray with a vehement glare.

Ray must have a hearing problem worse than Amy's, because he was quite sure he had already told him that Amy was _HIS..._


	12. Chapter 12

Ray woke up with Amy still nestled on his chest.

He brushed the hair from her face and tenderly grazed a thumb over her top lip, tracing it's arch. He admired his new friend with his hands, running them down her shoulders, over her ribcage, and and resting them above her tail bone before running them back up again. He twined his fingers in her long,layered, dark brown mane of hair and relished in the heat held within. He breathed her in again and couldn't resist to drop an adoring chaste kiss on her lips. This was the first time he had woken up to being warm since he had been turned. Even after feedings the warmth didn't last more than a few hours. To have someone alive know what he was and still entertain his company, he had never imagined. Yet, here she was, sleeping soundly with him in sweet embrace.

The tea lights had long since burned out. Ray reluctantly glanced about the room until he spied the little illuminated symbols of Amy's retro radio that read 7:18am. He knew he had slept well, but didn't think he had slept that long. He smiled in her hair, drawing her closer to him. "Amy.."

She felt cold. Anywhere that wasn't covered anyway. She drew in a deep breath and was greeted by the crisp smell of something close to cold green apples in the rain with sweet, but masculine undertones. _Ray_, she realized with a smile. She opened her eyes and couldn't see a thing, but she could smell and feel him beneath her. "Hey."she said huskily against the flesh of his throat, her voice weighed down by the cloak of sleep.

"It's about seven-twenty and we're still alone, in the dark, and me with no clothes on."he said in an amused tone.

Amy slowly pulled herself up until she was straddling his lap and stretched. "Yup."she said with a smile. She lazily scratched her cheek then winced as a sharp pinch of pain shot through the back of her neck. "Ah...my neck..."

Ray reached down beside the couch and caught up her brace. "I guess you still need this."

Amy couldn't see, but she knew what he was talking about. "Ugh, the dog cone."

Ray helped her put it back on. "It's not that bad,you're still pretty."

Amy blushed. "Well, thanks. I'm fairly sure you're the only guy to think so." She lifted her hair and draped it to the side in the brace to brush later and realized something,"And that's probably because it's been so long since you've seen an actual pretty girl. I'm kind of a ragamuffin really..."she said trailing off.

"I think ragamuffins are adorable. Although, I have an aversion to women who lack self esteem."Ray said as he ran his palms up her thighs to her hips.

Amy caught his hands with hers and smirked,"I have plenty of self esteem. It gets me in more trouble than you could imagine._ My_ problem is that I see things in the harsh light of reality." Her smirk faded,"The reality is that in the world I'm stuck in a girl can't be considered attractive if they don't have at least C-sized breasts, shimmering hair, perfect skin, big beautiful eyes, a sparkling personality, and weigh around a hundred and ten pounds. I don't meet any of those criteria,so no matter how comfortable I actually feel in my own skin...so I'm not what's considered pretty. It's stupid and I hate it, but it's just the way things are."

Ray rose up and captured Amy's lips with his in a surprise kiss. The first kiss was quick and wasn't quite right, so when she gasped he deepened the next one, slipping his velvety tongue past her lips. The tip briefly slid against hers before he traced the arch of her top lip with his tongue, then dipped back to kiss, then capture, her bottom lip between his teeth gently. He bit it just barely before releasing it, then cupped the back of her head with his hand. She offered no resistance when his lips met hers for the third time. His lips encouraged her mouth to open for him to dip his tongue inside to taste her.

_Amy tasted of cinnamon and clove.._

He felt her hot tongue timidly taste him back and he rose to meet her with fervor before pulling away leaving her breathless. "Amy...guys don't care about that crap. Only girls have those kinds of expectations for one another."he spoke softly to her.

Before Amy could respond to him a light flipped on and flooded the room with an amber light.

"Jesus! Turn that off it's too bright!"she yelled covering her eyes.

Ray cried out in pain. He doubled over against Amy as his skin began to burn.

Amy grasped Ray by his shoulders. His skin felt hot like a stone in the summer sun. "Turn out that light! You're hurting him!"she shrieked.

"Oops."Slappy said unsympathetically from the bottom of the stairs. "I'll turn it off after you're upstairs Amy. I recall you have school today."

Amy glared at him, then defiantly took off her over-sized night shirt quickly and draped it over trembling Ray before covering her breasts and storming upstairs.

When the door slammed Slappy switched off the light as promised. "It's a soft-light bulb. It's actually quite dim. It won't kill you, but I'm sure it hurts."

Hell yeah it hurt. It was like getting a sever sunburn.

Ray had a pretty good idea why Slappy was obviously pissed at him, so he tried to choose his words carefully. "Good morning.."he hissed in pain as he slipped his arms through the shirt sleeves.

"Good morning."Slappy responded very unamused. "Did you sleep well?"

Ray swallowed hard and ran his hands through his hair. "Heh..yeah, pretty well. You..?"

"I didn't sleep at all. After I came back down to see what was taking Amy, I was up keeping an eye on the two of you the rest of the night. "Slappy said as he slipped his hands in the pockets of a pair of pants he had gotten from the finished clothing rack by Amy's sewing machine last night. Then he had installed the light bulb.

Ray looked behind the couch at Slappy,"That's a little creepy."

"_ 'Little creep'.._ I was thinking of those exact words too."Slappy walked over to the drawstring sweat pants on the floor and tossed them at Ray. "I don't appreciate what you did, Ray."

He averted his eyes from the dummy. "I'm sorry."he said standing up and slipping on the pants.

"Ray." Slappy walked over and stood directly in front of Ray. He glared up at him. There was a long silent pause as he stared him down. "This was your second strike. If you ever fuck around with Amy again, I'll lock you in a tanning bed."

Ray liked Amy, but he had a strong feeling that he absolutely shouldn't get on Slappy's bad side. He tied the drawstring on the pants. "Okay."

Slappy narrowed his eyes at Ray then smiled and walked over to the television. He clicked it on to some muted news channel. "The last thing I need is for you to get her pregnant. I'd have no idea what to do with the puppies."he joked.

Ray grimaced. "I'd prefer it if you'd stop referring to Amy like she's a dog. It really bothers me."

"I was referencing_ you_ in that statement, too." Slappy said with a cold glare." Let me make myself perfectly clear, Amy isn't for you, Ray. Yours is out there waiting for you to watch them again."he accentuated his words jabbing a thumb over his shoulder to some unknown destination.

Ray's eyes widened. "What...?"

"You heard me. You failed in watching them didn't you?" The oblivious, confused look Ray gave Slappy answered a suspicion Slappy had had about Ray. He exhaled, exasperated with Dawes incompetence concerning Ray. "I'm guessing you don't know much about yourself, do you?"

"Compton never told me anything unless I had to know." Ray was suddenly feeling ill. "What don't I know..?

Slappy rolled his eyes. He knew it...the poor bastard didn't know anything. Slappy mentally paused as a thought occured to him. Ray's ignorance could work in his own favor. He had already put up with enough trash from the kid because he planned on using him, but this made things much easier. If he could completely win him over, Ray could be his own little secret weapon. A fully actualized watcher was one of the strongest monster out there. If he had that kind of fire power at his disposal...

Slappy sighed and resigned himself to further exercise patience with Ray. It would be worth it in the end.

"I can understand how Amy seems so very comforting to you at the moment,"he said sarcastically," but she'd be nothing but a passing fancy to you in time. You are bound to the one who got away. They, by all the dark rights that made you, owns you. You aren't my dog, you're theirs."Slappy sat down in the floral chair across from Ray.

Ray was in a state of shock.

_Amanda...she owned him? But how,why? What else didn't he know?_

Ray sat back down on the couch slowly, feeling disturbed.

Slappy crossed his legs and grinned wryly at Ray. "Well, I suppose we should have a conversation to clear a few things up."

* * *

Dog whistles and cat calls echoed down the crowded hallway. "Hey look! Somebody finally put a collar on Kramer!"a boy joked.

"I wonder if she got neutered or spayed?"a girl giggled to a friend as they passed by.

"_I wonder what she did this time?_" a hushed voice asked.

"_Who cares? Maybe next time she'll do herself a favor and finish the job._"a bitter girl replied.

Amy slammed her locker shut with ferocity and turned around. Nobody looked at her, but she heard snickers from all around. She hefted her gym bag over her shoulder and strode to the locker room to change.

It had been like this since she stepped into class late and been teased by Mr. Jeffers. He hadn't meant any harm, but after that everyone else who quipped in seemed as though they had a personal vendetta against her.

To be fair, a good bit of them did,really.

Amy could appreciate a good joke as much as the next person, but these weren't funny. It didn't help things that she hadn't eaten all day. Amy was in a fearsome mood by time she stepped onto the softball field.

Mrs. Roarch saw Amy a groaned. "Kramer. You can't play with an injury like that."

"I'm fine,it's practically cosmetic."she said as she pulled out her personal bat from her bag.

"_Of course_ that would be Amy's idea of make-up."a short girl with curly orange hair said as she relaxed on the bleachers with another girl who brushed her hair.

Amy did some test swings with her bat and leered at her,"Hey Courtney, why don't you eat some make-up and make yourself pretty on the inside instead?"

Courtney sneered at her,"I'd still shit out something prettier than you."

Amy smiled,"I'd like to see that, but I'd have a hard time deciding if you're shitting or barfing."

"KRAMER."Mrs. Roarch growled. "No more fights. You've already been suspended from the team twice this year."

"So put me on the guys team!"Amy said.

"No." Mrs. Roarch said firmly.

Amy gave and exaggerated gesture then looked at her P.E. teacher pleadingly, "There are guy cheerleaders! Why can't there be girl on the guy softball team? I mean, it's SOFTBALL. It was practically invented for girls to begin with."

Mrs. Roarch motioned for the next girl to go to bat. "Not a chance Kramer. The guys are on the guys team and the girls are on the girls team. No exceptions."

"It's gender discrimination. Sexism."Amy said resting her bat over her shoulder.

Mrs. Roarch looked back at her. "You're right, but it's not in the way you think."

Whatever the hell that meant. Amy sighed, giving up the argument.

Mrs. Roarch looked around for any other teachers then back at Amy. "Are you really okay, Kramer?"

Amy smirked broadly. "Hell yeah."

"Okay. Batter up. Let's give these ladies some catching practice."she said and motioned her to the batting mound.

* * *

Ray stared at his reflection in the mirror. He didn't really look thirteen when he was thirteen and he really didn't look it now. In all those years trapped in DarkFalls he had wondered what he'd look like at seventeen or eighteen. All the recent feeding on Amy did mature him like Slappy had said it would have. It meant he was becoming less human and more..watcher. He tilted his head from side to side inspecting his pallor skin.

"Amy will be home soon, kid. Get ready. We'll be leaving as soon as the sun sets."Slappy said from the basement bathroom doorway.

Ray nodded. Slappy walked away and Ray closed the bathroom door. He turned on the water in the thin shower stall. He took off his clothes and laid them across the sink before stepping under the hot cascade. He stood there for a long time staring at the tiles blankly. His mind would not let him go over any of the information Slappy had told him. He took up the dirty looking bar of soap and rinsed it until he could use it. Amy's blood still moved rhythmically through his veins, maintaining a surprising amount of warmth, but his heart felt cold and heavy.

_Depressed._

The water turned cold by time he finished trying to wash away the feeling.

* * *

Slappy walked upstairs just before Amy walked in the door. They looked at each other for a long moment before Amy gave him a half smile. "Is Ray still alive?"

"He's the same amount of dead as he was this morning, if that answers your question."he responded.

"Kinda." Amy slung her bags onto the recliner by the door then reached up and released the clasps on her neck brace. "I think I can live without this damn thing now. I sorta rather die than wear it anymore, actually." She flung the thing on the couch then took her hair out of it's messy bun.

"Call Margo."Slappy said and went into the kitchen to fetch the phone.

Amy toed off her shoes then picked them up with the toes on her left foot. She bounced on one foot until she got to the hall closet and tossed them in. "Ha ha!"she cried at her tiny triumph.

Slappy held the house phone behind Amy and looked at her with an evaluating gaze, then quirked a brow at her.

"I got mad skills."she said happily.

Slappy gave the faintest amused smirk."Call Margo."he repeated and held out the phone to her.

Amy smiled at him and took the phone. She leaned against he wall and dialed. She was surprised when Margo actually answered. "Oh,hey. I thought I'd get you're message box." She shrugged at Slappy for some reason then waited for Margo to stop talking on the other line. "Yeah, actually I was calling for that reason. Funny huh? How much would your dad pay per hour for this weekend?"Amy paused."Yeah."she waited again."Really? Hell yeah. Oh hey, I_ might_ know a couple of guys that _might_ be able to help after dark if your dad is interested. Washing dishes and stuff maybe."

Slappy's eyes widened at Amy. She had better not be talking about him. He didn't do dishes.

"I'd like to work as much as possible." Amy paused again then frowned at the phone. "No. I didn't burn my kitchen down again. Or the garage. I need it for traveling expenses. I'll tell you about it on Friday. See ya then Margo, thanks!" Amy hung up the phone and exhaled.

"What did you mean by 'you know a couple of guys'?"Slappy asked crossing his arms.

Amy slid down the wall and sat on the floor so she had to tilt her chin up a little to look Slappy in the eyes. "You are coming with me."

Slappy leaned against the wall on his shoulder. "How do you propose that will work?"he asked."Unless you want to do another show together..?"

"As if!" she scoffed. "I wasn't exactly impressed by your performance the last time we were together."

Slappy tilted his nose up the slightest bit."You had a problem with my performance?"

She pointed at him."You called my momma fat, my dad bald, and the rest of my family ugly."

He smirked."That wasn't performing. It's was just making observations."

Amy tried not to smile, but couldn't."It wasn't funny."

Slappy was intrigued by her failed attempt to act unamused. "Then why are you smiling?"

"Okay, in hindsight it was a little funny."she confessed and leaned back her head on the wall, gazing up at him. "Mom and dad were really uptight. It was pretty satisfying to see them taken down a peg."

Slappy nodded at her."You're welcome."

Amy blinked slowly at him with a smile still tugging at he corners of her mouth. "Sara can make you look like a little person. We've been passing Dennis off for years now. He even gets by at the hospital when he's required to go in for training."

Slappy looked curious."The hospital?"

"He's studying to be a nurse. He didn't tell you?"Amy drew up her knees up and draped her arms across them.

"I'd rather have a conversation with your cat George."Slappy replied.

Amy rolled her eyes."He's not that bad."

"No, the cat vomits up hair balls, Dennis actually looks like one. I like the cat."

Amy covered her mouth to muffle a laugh. "He has hair gel for that now. Not everybody is blessed with an eternal,perfectly quaffed hair-do like you do."Amy gently tapped on his wooden curve of bangs.

His red lipped smile widened. "Too bad."

"Back on topic; Margo's dad pays under the table for around ten bucks an hour base pay. I can get up to seventeen an hour being a waitress at fancy gigs plus tips. It mostly depends on the get-up they have me wear."

"French maid,eh?"he joked.

Amy gave him a serious look,"Yeah...I've doing one's like that for a couple of years now... Twenty bucks an hour, but.." Amy shuddered, "..so fucking creepy."

"A couple of years? How old are you now? Seventeen? What kind of business is he running over there?"Slappy started feeling less inclined to this idea.

Amy arched a brow at him,"Really? This coming from the guy that said he wanted me to be 'his slave' and 'devote myself to him for the rest of my life' when I was twelve?"

Slappy's eye widened then he looked away from her and groaned. Christ, he did say that didn't he? "I also said you'd be an excellent slave. I'll be the first to admit I had the wrong idea about that one, too."

Amy laughed lightly."This is fun. I didn't think it would be."she said looking at her uneven fingernails.

He looked back at her and tilted his head. "What is?"

"Talking to you."she said.

Slappy didn't know what to say. He didn't expect her to say that.

Amy blushed faintly then stood up and looked back down at him. "What about those fabric recommendations you were going on about last night? You got em'?"

He motioned to the basement door."Sure." He walked with her to the door and she opened it for him. On his way down the stairs he called back to her,"Now that I think about it, one of the bolts of fabric I chose had enough on it to make a matching maid outfit for you, too.."

"Now that I think about it, I could kick you down the stairs."she replied.

Slappy tilted his head back and laughed.


	13. Chapter 13

"Hot pockets. MMMM! Manna from heaven!"Amy said as she took the pizza pocket from the microwave. Unfortunately, she broke a cardinal rule of life itself and took a bite. "GAAAH!_ Burns like hell_!"she yelped, spitting the molten bite into her hand. The nugget of goodness felt like it was burning a hole through her palm. "AHH!"she flung it across the room and rubbed her hand on her already dirty jeans. "Shit! Damn you and your delicious treachery!"she scolded and set the plate with her evil treat on the counter to cool.

"Amy! Watch your mouth!"Mrs. Kramer called from the living room where she was watching her Tivo'ed soap operas that she had been following for the past twenty three years.

"Sorry mom."she said and filled up a glass with cold water at the fridge. She stuck the tip of her tongue in the cool liquid then headed to the living room.

Amy's mother looked at her and scowled. "Stop doing that Amy. You look ridiculous."

She rolled her eyes at her mother and did as she was told. "I'm working at Margo's dad's party hall all this weekend."

Mrs. Kramer paused her shows. "Alright." She looked thoughtful then nodded her head. "_That's good._ Margo is a sensible girl. Why don't you spend more time with her?"

Amy did a twirl in the air finger. "Because she lives the next town over and she doesn't have much time for me anymore since she got a boyfriend."

"Oh Amy, that's normal sweetie. Maybe she could introduce you to someone nice too?"she said smiling hopefully at Amy.

"Drake isn't what I'd call nice, mom."she said then sipped her drink.

"All couples fight sometimes."Mrs. Kramer said dismissively.

The door to the basement opened and Slappy came out. He proceeded to turn off lights without explanation.

"Oh hey, we're going to go check out something in that empty lot down the highway-"she started to tell her mother but she cut her off.

Mrs. Kramer quickly turned her program back on, ignoring the dummy behind her. "I don't care Amy. Just go...have fun."she said irritably.

Ray timidly peeked out from the basement. His eyes reflected light as he peered around, looking for any offending lights.

Amy thought he looked like a raccoon. "It's okay Ray. Come on out, you can meet mom."

He didn't think it was that great of an idea, but he didn't want to be rude. "I'd like that."he lied.

Amy waved at her mom to pause the show and he stepped up beside Amy.

"Hello. I'm Ray Thurston. It's nice to meet you."he passed a hand through his hair and smiled shyly at her. "Thank you for letting me stay, I apologize for the inconvenience."he said as polity as he could.

Mrs. Kramer did a double take when she saw Ray. A blush crept across her cheeks at the sight of the young man. He looked just like someone she used to have a crush on as a young girl. "Oh...It's nice to meet you too."she said nicely.

Amy stared at her mom like she had just spouted a second head. A second head that was Gilbert Gottfried.

"It's no trouble at all, sweetie. You just stay as long as you need to."she gushed.

Amy's jaw nearly hit the floor. Who was this woman and how had she disposed of her mother's bitchier half?

"Thank you."he said looking at the floor and smiling sheepishly.

"It's time to go."Slappy interjected.

"Bye mom!"Amy said then pulled Ray by the arm down the hall.

"You kids be careful!"she called after them,watching until Ray was out of sight. She giggled then took her phone out of her purse texted an old friend.

* * *

"Oh my god, that was creepy."Amy said shuddering as they walked through the woods.

"I think your mom likes me."Ray said smiling.

"That's what's creepy!"Amy laughed making a mist of cold condensation puff in the chilly night air. They had taken a route through the woods to avoid Ray getting caught in any headlights from the highway.

"Wait, Amy."Slappy ordered from ahead of them. He held up an old fashioned candle lantern to light the area ahead of him for her. "There's a wide creek ahead. Don't fall in."

"Woah!"Amy hollered when her feet were swept out from under her.

Slappy looked back to see Ray carrying her in his arms. He frowned and backtracked to them.

Ray looked down to Slappy who approached them, slightly frightened that he might be about to get his ass kicked. "Hop on. I'll get us all over at the same time."he offered.

"No need." Slappy said as he strode behind them a few more feet then turned around and dashed ahead, jumping the twenty-foot gap easily.

Amy couldn't believe it. "Damn."she cursed, impressed. This night was full of surprises.

Ray smirked. He took a few strides then kicked off at he edge of the chasm. Amy wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him like a scared cat. He laughed and floated over in an arch. "Thank you for choosing Ray Airlines..."he joked as he set Amy back on her feet. She gave a little laugh readjusting her varsity jacket.

Slappy watched Ray, waiting until he set Amy down before he turned around to take the lead again. Amy and Ray made small talk the rest of the way until they exited the woods to the empty expanse of what was once Dark Falls. Slappy glanced back at them.

Ray was nervous, he could sense it on him.

"Let's get this over with."Slappy said and plowed forward through the underbrush.

Ray hesitated, he suddenly got cold feet. He really didn't want to go anywhere near the place that had been his prison for so long.

Amy's warm hand wrapped around his unexpectedly.

He looked to her and she smiled back at him. They stared at each other until Amy finally made a silly face at him to break the moment.

He couldn't help himself and laughed. He looked to the ground and sighed. "I guess I'm a little nervous. I just escaped this place, I never wanted to come back."

Amy kissed the back of his hand,"It's okay. You're not alone. You've got us with you this time."

Ray blushed feeling better, but also worried that Slappy may have seen that. "Thanks.., Amy."

"Let's go steal a car!"she shouted enthusiastically and pulled him with her after Slappy, who was only discernible as a glowing light moving through the tall grass.

Ray was dragged at first, then he decided to just go with it and started skipping through the grass with Amy. "Yay!"he cried happily."Grand theft auto!" They both burst out laughing like idiots until they caught up to Slappy at Dead House.

Slappy sat on the bottom step of the Dead House, idly swinging the lantern as he waited. He supposed it was fine for those two to act like morons if it meant that Ray would be less tense.

Amy and Ray almost fell over one another laughing when they got to Dead House.

"Oh my god, that was so derpy and awesome!"she laughed into Ray's shoulder.

"That was really, really stupid! I feel a little dumber now, I think." he said joked.

"No way, it was great."she giggled then punched him playfully in the arm.

Ray caught his breath as he looked at his ex-prison looming over them. "Luckily, we don't have to go in there. We need to go into the woods behind the house and head closer to the cemetery...if it's still there."he said, surprised at his ability to push his emotions aside now that he was here.

"Okay. Let's go." Slappy then took one last look at the house behind him.

He was glad. The demonic aura coming from it made even him feel a little wary.

_Something was in there._

* * *

A while later, Ray lead the way this time and Amy walked beside Slappy.

Ray carried the lantern through an unnatural darkness. Amy didn't notice at first, but after a few minutes the absence of any sound other than their foot steps, she became aware. When she looked around for a reason for the silence, she saw nothing. She could see Slappy and Ray, and the decaying, leaf blanketed earth between them. Beyond that, nothing.

Something seemed very wrong. "Hey Slappy...are we okay..?"Amy asked him apprehensively, but not sure she wanted to know the answer.

He glanced up at Amy and could see the concern in her eyes.

_Damn._

"You noticed, then?"he said. He had hoped she would have continued on in ignorance a little longer. "It's nothing Amy. Just keep walking and don't step outside of the light."he told her calmly.

"Why?"she asked feeling completely un-reassured.

He responded with a 'don't ask' look. "Don't stop. Stay in the light."he repeated quietly to her.

Ray had become aware of the imposing presence too late and he had accidentally lead them into something that wasn't supposed to be there.

They walked on quietly, deeper into the darkness.

There was a sudden indiscernible noise to the right of them. Amy jumped and gasped lightly,looking in the direction of the noise.

Slappy cursed internally. It was happening faster than he had thought it would. Slappy grabbed Amy's wrist and roughly pulled her closer to Ray. "Keep walking Ray. Do not stop."he ordered him, positioning Amy to walk between the two monsters.

The tone of Slappy's voice confirmed it. They had wandered into something unnatural and dangerous. A dark that even he couldn't see through."What is this Slappy?"he asked feeling scared and doing his best to mask it in his voice.

"You don't know?"Amy asked feeling panicked. Where was he leading them? She hugged her arms and hurried to keep up with Ray.

"It's okay, Amy." Slappy said firmly as the sounds increased and grew closer to their little circle of light. "I'll let you know what it is when we're out, Ray. Keep going,but don't run." he instructed as they picked up their pace. He knew the situation was bad, but there was no need putting them in a panic, yet. He just needed to keep them moving.

Slappy notice something out of the corner of his eye and saw Amy look. "Amy! Don't look at them!"he shouted at her.

She looked back at him,fear reflecting in her eyes."Who's out there?"she asked him.

He calmed himself, "Keep moving. Look only at Ray, no matter what, focus on him or the lantern."he said and pushed gently at the small of her back getting her closer still to Ray. "That goes for you too, Ray. Look straight ahead." It was happening much faster than he thought it would. At the back, he could see glimpses of the things in the dark as they closed in. One reached out to grab Amy's hair. He slapped it away immediately. Amy cried out when the thing screamed out in a voice like a legion of terrified animals. It started pelting them with rocks and dirt. They lashed out at Amy again and Slappy intercepted them again.

"We're going to either arrive at a crossroads or an old shack." he told Ray loudly then something scratched Slappy's wooden cheek, leaving ridges in the paint there. It escalated into pushing and ripping his clothes as he pushed on,ignoring it. He knew after attacking them, they would focus on him from now on.

"If it's the crossroads, go left."he said raising his voice to compensate over the screaming around them, then felt a hard push to his back and heard ripping. He squinted hard an held back a grunt of pain. He continued as if nothing happened. "If it's an old shack..."Slappy wanted to tell them to pray, but thought better of it,"..I'll handle it."

"Are you okay back there Slappy?"Ray asked loudly trying to overcome the continuous screaming around them, but didn't dare look back.

"I'm fine! Keep going!"he shouted.

Amy held her hands over her ears and got as close to Ray as she could. She was going to have nightmares forever after this. This was bullshit. She usually laughed when shit like this happened in scary movies, but she sure as hell wasn't going to anymore. "Slappy!"she screamed. Something scratched her ankle and she stumbled. She looked down to see what it was, but saw Slappy quickly at her side kicking something that would ensure her nightmares away from her.

He glared up at her.

Amy's face fell into horror and concern. Slappy was practically mutilated. "Oh god-"

"Keep going."he told her gravely, giving her backside a slap. "And _do not_ look at them! If they see you see them they will follow you the rest of your mortal life,Amy!"he warned her as she hurriedly caught back up to Ray, looking thoroughly scared.

"But what about you? _You_ aren't fine, Slappy!"she said as she stared intently at the lantern, actually near tears.

"Just keep _g-!_"

Amy gasped and looked back.

Slappy was gone.

"SLAPPY!"she shrieked and took one step to go find him before Ray yanked her back by her arm. "Ray!?"she yelled in betrayal as he dragged her forward,"Slappy's gone, we have to help him!" She yelled at the back of his head.

"We can't stop. He told us not to stop."Ray replied mechanically trudging on with Amy struggling and stumbling in his grip.

"Keep going, Ray! _Turn LEFT!_"Slappy cried to them from the darkness.

"Slappy!?" Amy called back into the surrounding blackness, her eyes searching wildly.

"Keep looking forward Amy! Slappy can take care of himself! Just do as he said, please!"Ray yelled at her, his patience worn thin by fear.

"_No!_" Amy sobbed as she was drug along. "You didn't see him! They are going to kill him, Ray!" she screamed desperately, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Ray wanted to go back too. He was certain Slappy was going to die in whatever god forsaken hell they had wandered into. He had to keep her safe, even if she hated him for it. "I'm sorry, Amy. Forgive me."he pulled her faster.

Amy got pissed off. She started screaming and hitting him,struggling harder than before. "Let me go!"she wailed until she was pulled off balance and he was forced to drag her across the ground that had turned stoney.

"Amy please!"Ray begged her as his voice cracked.

Amy looked back and saw movement in the shadows that were dipping at her sneakers. There was noise all around them. The screaming,the breaking, and the unrecognizable voices saying horrible, hateful curses at them. Then she saw it again. Rotten arms reaching out wildly trying to grab her feet. Amy started screaming and kicking at the hands. She tried to get back to her feet but couldn't find a footing in the loose stones making up the ground. Thank god Ray was dragging her or she would have been dragged of by them instead. "Go faster, Ray!"she screamed at him.

"I can't run! Slappy said not to run!"he quoted to her walking as fast as he could with long strides.

The things were closing in, she could see the stones scatter all around them and disembodied arms lashing into view. She couldn't look away as the hands grasped out from all directions tearing at her jacket, hair, and legs. Amy's heart missed a beat and time seemed to stand still when a hand grasped her right ankle.

A horrible, rotting_ thing_ then started pulling itself up her leg, bringing it's bowed head into view of the light. She closed her eyes and kicked blindly trying to knock it off.

Ray couldn't do anything, he was becoming more panicked by the second. Then he finally saw it. A crossroads. "I see it Amy! Hold on!"he cried out plowing on.

She felt it's slick body climbing up hers and it's foul stench made her want to vomit,but she kept her eyes shut.

"_Amy.._."it said when it reached her belly.

How the HELL did that thing know her name? She bit her lip and shut her eyes tighter than before. "Let me go...!"she growled her plea as stones scraped her back.

"_AMY!_"Slappy's voice yelled her name.

Amy instantly opened her eyes.

**_She saw the top of it's head._ **

_**SHIT.** _

Before her eyes glanced down at it's face, it was suddenly decapitated.

Amy's eyes grew wide.

Slappy flung the ripped off head behind him as he rode it's back. He set to work ripping the arms away from around Amy's body. "Why don't you listen!?"he yelled at her as the body fell away and rolled into the darkness. He hopped off and came striding back into the light as Ray turned down the left road that descended into further darkness. The screams and fury stopped as they hurried down the path.

Amy tried again and this time made it to her feet, panting and quietly crying. She looked at Slappy.

He was practically _ruined_ and it broke her heart.

Soon, it became quiet and still again and the darkness began to permeate even the lantern light.

"It's okay."Slappy said softly to them. "Just keep going."

Amy drew closer to Slappy now that Ray had let her go. "Slappy..."she breathed and reached out to touch his shoulder, but they were suddenly swallowed by darkness. A jolt of fear coursed through her, but then she felt Slappy's hand grab hers.

She didn't know why, but she instantly felt calm.

She let him lead her through the darkness until the lantern light came back into view. They all walked in silence until the sound of leaves rustling in the wind and insects chirping began again.

They abruptly stepped out into a wide expanse. They were standing in an old parking lot next to an old school building.

Slappy looked back.

Amy did the same and couldn't believe her eyes.

Everything was normal behind them, no indication that _anything_ had happened.

She was pulled from her wondering when she heard Ray vomit. She turned to Slappy,"What the fuck _was that_?"

"A wandering void."he said, immensely relieved they had made it out. "It's bad luck we ran into it." He peeled off what was left of his shirt and dropped it to the ground in ribbons. He sighed looking at the damage left behind on his body, then walked over to Ray who had laid down on the ground a few feet from where he had thrown up.

Amy's eyes widened at Slappy and she gestured wildly at everything around them. "That's it? _'Bad luck we ran into it'_? Does this happen to you often? Because it doesn't to me! Most of the time my 'bad luck' involves something like, stepping in dog shit or falling down the stairs, hell maybe falling down stairs into dog shit if I'm particularly unlucky! That wasn't bad luck! That was a stroll through hell!"she ranted in almost hysterics.

Slappy ignored her, the less she knew the better. He stood over Ray. The kid was laying on his side with is hands covering his face, his breathing labored. He knelt down and placed a hand on Ray's shoulder. That's when he noticed that one of his own fingers were missing. He grumbled, then focused back on Ray. "You did good Ray. The path would have disappeared and we would have been trapped there if you had stopped. Good job."he praised the watcher, hoping it would help ease him and he sincerely meant it.

Ray nodded under his hands and tried to slow his breathing. "_No problem._"he said in barely over a whisper.

Amy relented her frustration and joined them. She sat down on the ground beside Slappy and placed her hand over his on Ray's shoulder. She realized that that had been really hard for Ray, dragging her around and soldiering on like that.

It had been_ really hard_ on Slappy, too from the look of him.

Amy sighed,"You both protected me. I'm sorry. You shouldn't have had to."

"It was a once in a lifetime occurrence. It should pass by and not come back through here again for another hundred years or so."Slappy said and sat down with them.

Amy scooted closer to him and inspected his wounds with gentle touches. She was intrigued by that despite all the damage, his intense blue eyes still glimmered the same as always. For some reason, there was something so comforting in that and she was overcome with emotion. Amy quickly wrapped her arms around the dummy held him close.

Slappy made a surprised noise against her chest and struggled a little, before sighing and letting her hold him. He patted her on the arm.

Slappy heard Ray sit up nearby and was ready to get up and move again, but was surprised when he felt Ray embrace both of them.

"This is weird for me."Slappy announced in monotone.

"Too bad."Amy said as she held him closer while leaning into Ray.

"_Just for a little while..?_"Ray asked sounding quite subdued.

Slappy grumbled. "Fine, but then we go look for that car. I'll be damned if we don't at least look for it after going through all this."


	14. Chapter 14

"Are you sure you're alright, Slappy?"Ray asked again as he glided over the barbed wire top of the chain link fence.

Slappy grabbed the rusty edge of the fence at the bottom and jerked it away from it's corroded post. "I should regenerate after a while."he said as he pulled the popping web of orange back enough for Amy to pass through without having to get a tetanus shot.

"I_ guess_ I could carry you if you'd want..."Amy blushed and offered, stepping back as he pulled. She still felt guilty for his current condition.

Slappy smirked at her."As comfortable as your saddlebags are, I can manage for myself."

"Saddle bags!?"Amy shrieked. She self consciously grabbed her hips and frowned at him.

He laughed, dusting his hands on the remnants of his undershirt and jeans, then passed through the opening.

She grumbled under her breath and followed him.

They walked into an old parking lot dotted with various abandoned cars.

"Awesome, one of these has to work right?"Amy said inspecting a brown Oldsmobile.

"I had one over here in mind."Ray motioned and headed further behind the school. "Follow me."

Amy lingered behind them, excitedly looking at few more old cars before catching up to Ray and Slappy. She arrived just in time the see Slappy kicking a tire of the one car that ever stole her breath away.

"Not bad. It needs new tires."Slappy commented standing beside Ray.

She stopped in her tracks. "Oh my god."she gasped covering her her mouth with both hands.

Ray tilted his head and smiled in curiosity at Amy's reaction. He patted the side of a 1959 black and cream AMC Rambler Ambassador station wagon with chrome and red trim.

Amy screamed in a way you usually only hear at boy band concerts. "It's gorgeous! It even has tail fins!"she cried out elated, running around to the back of it. It looked like something from an old movie.

Slappy gave Ray a perplexed look.

Ray shrugged at Slappy, delighted and confused at Amy's reaction. "It was my Principal's car. He loved it more than anything else in the world."he said as he watched her inspecting every detail of the exterior. "That's why I though of it. If any of these cars will work, it'll be this one." he said kicking the flat white walled tires.

"THIS CAR."Amy said grinning wildly as she looked through the dirty glass at the red leather interior. "I love it! There are no other cars anymore. Only this one and I would have it's babies."

"I'm guessing the keys are in there?"Slappy asked motioning to the creepy old school building.

"Old Mr. Galloway lived in the school. They'll be in his apartment, in the loft above the gymnasium."Ray said looking at the grey decaying building that was most likely crawling with asbestos.

Slappy started walking to the old school and called back over his shoulder. "Amy, stay out here with the car."

Amy perked up at the mention of her name. She narrowed her eyes at Slappy for a moment. She didn't like being told what to do, but...

Amy smiled and hugged the hood of the car. "Okay, but I get to name him '_Action Bastard_'."

Slappy stopped and looked back at her with an expression that only be read as _'what the fuck?'_.

Ray laughed. Sometimes Amy was just weird. "We'll leave the two of you alone then.."he said and took a few steps backwards, smiling and waving at Amy who didn't notice.

* * *

He joined Slappy at the chained up entrance to the old school.

Slappy pointed to the heavy padlock and thick chains. "I want you to try breaking it."

"What? Me? How?"he asked perplexed.

"Surprise me."Slappy said flatly. He figured it would be a simple enough task so he could gauge Ray's strength and how much control he had.

He knew they were at a school, but Ray wasn't expecting a pop quiz. Ray shifted on his feet nervously,"Okay..umm.." He looked around, but didn't notice anything he could use to pry the chains off with. Next, he slowly floated backwards down the school steps and looked for any windows that weren't barred.

"No luck."he whispered. He was fairly sure he was failing so far.

He lightly kicked off from the ground and floated back up the steps to the entrance. He was painfully aware of Slappy's evaluating gaze on him. "I guess I could...maybe.."he held the padlock in his hand and inspected it. Not rusted. It almost looked new as did the chains. All the same, he thought he'd give brute strength a try. Ray jerked the chains hard and the doors rattled noisily,but nothing else. Ray grumbled an embarrassed curse under his breath. It frustrated him to look so inexperienced in front of Slappy. He furrowed his brow and moved on to his next idea.

Slappy observed Ray patiently as the young monster tried hopelessly to figure out which approach to take. Ray would be his greatest asset if the boy could learn how to use his powers properly. Watchers were a specialized hybrid of monster after all. They were capable of becoming one of the biggest 'bads' out there.  
He wondered what Dawes had been thinking. He had obviously kept Ray in an adolescent state_ in more than one sense of the word_ and in the end abandoned him. Dawes had completely failed him as an overseer.

Slappy scowled as a thought dawned on him.  
Perhaps Ray had only been his plaything?  
After all, Slappy could sense the lingering marks Dawes had left on him.

"RAAH!"Ray roared as he kicked the unyielding doors.

"Don't get angry. Only foolish monsters rely on only fury for strength." Slappy chided him.

Ray panted trying to qualm his frustration. They hell did Slappy want from him!? If it was so damn easy, why didn't he do it?

"Focus on what you want to do. Make it the only focus in your mind. Use that thought to channel and control your demon. It will help you break the chains." he said then pointed to the chains. "Try again."

Ray grit his jaw. Couldn't Slappy have just told him to do that from the beginning, instead of letting him float around looking like a fucking moron?

Ray turned and looked to the doors. He faintly sneered feeling disgust. He had a general idea of what Slappy was talking about. He didn't like accessing his demon for anything other than feeding and he always kept it on a very short leash. Compton had always told him to never let it loose except under dire circumstance.

Ray narrowed his ghostly blue eyes as his heart seemed to grow colder at the thought of that man.

_Well,__ fuck Compton Dawes. He had Slappy and Amy now._

Slappy watched as Ray closed his eyes and slowly evened out his breathing. After around two minutes he could sense the demon within Ray. Slappy quickly focused intensely on him, feeling out the strength and nature of the demon.

Ray opened his smoldering red eyes. He channeled more of his demon than he had ever before. It was exhilarating to say the least and Ray wondered why Compton had forbade him from releasing his demon in the first place. The next breath he took his senses were flooded with the pungent perfume of life from Amy in the parking lot behind him. His silver teeth glimmered in the moonlight. The demon was hungry and lustful. She smelled fucking delicious...

"Ray."Slappy called slowly.

Red eyes drifted lazily to look at the dummy.

Slappy started to get the feeling that he was only capable of bad ideas lately. He regretted his impromptu lesson and summoned up his own strength. His eyes flickered fluorescent green as he held the younger monsters glare."You're loosing control of him, Ray. Keep your demon under control. Remember that you are the master of your vessel, he's_ only_ there to work for you."

"You talk so big for such a tiny thing..."he purred and turned to Slappy.

"Ray. _The chain._ That is what we are here for. We need to get the car keys, Ray."he reminded him, trying to keep Ray's consciousness near the surface. If he lost Ray, things were going to get ugly for a second time that night.

He stood imposingly over the shorter demon doll and smirked his silver smile at him. "I'm going to fucking kill you."

* * *

"FUCK!"Amy yelped, scared half to death, when Ray went flying into the windshield of the car next to her. Her shock gave way to concern,"Ray!?" Amy left her dirty jacket on the hood of a cleaner looking 'Action Bastard' and climbed onto the other car. "What happened!? Ray are you okay!?"

He growled and gurgled on blood and bile rising into his mouth as he struggled to sit up. He was wedged between the two front cars seats. The windshield glass made a twinkling sound as it rained off his shoulders down to the floorboard. He glared ahead at the girl crawling towards him.

Amy froze. She knew those eyes. Those meant shit just got real. "Uh oh."

He lunged forward sending a spray of glass in all directions. He caught her around the throat and choked her against the hood of the car,watching her writhe for air.

Amy really had to stop ending up with Ray on top of her looking really hungry every few hours.

She struggled against his strangle hold and saw his demeanor had turned into something very _not_ Ray. It looked like him, but without a mote of what made Ray so damn likable. This thing..it was just terrifying.  
"Sssl-"she squeaked out through her compressed airway. Suddenly the world spun and she found herself on the ground coughing and gasping for breath.

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU?"Slappy bellowed as he stalked after Ray who he had ripped off of Amy, yet again. He was going to have to dominate this demon or else Ray could loose his soul.

Ray gave a demonic roar at the approaching little monster as he stood back up.

"Shut up!" Slappy ordered him. He was in no mood for this. "I takes a hell of a lot more than that to intimidate me, you little shit! Don't think for a moment you can treat my belongings as you please!"

Ray stood his ground as the living dummy closed in, just as Slappy had hoped. Slappy darted forward and threw the first punch.

Ray caught the dummy's little wooden fist and slung him into the air far behind him.

Slappy landed hard on the roof of a car with a loud crunch of metal and shattered glass. He sat up and found he had been thrown far off, near the entrance to the parking lot. Ray was coming for him and he quickly rolled off the car, diving into the maze of vehicles.

"Where are you, you dirty little cat!?"he roared as he weaved through the cars. He could hear the quick footsteps of his prey as it eluded him. He hurried faster after him. To the left, then to the right, then the right again. Then nothing. He listened closely for any indication on his location.  
"Where are you!?"the demon shouted, his smoldering red and black eyes searching.

_Nothing._

He couldn't even sense Slappy's demonic aura anymore.

_That was it._

Seething, he jabbed his hands into the hard metal shell of the car in front of him and threw it to the left. "Outta' my way!"

Amy sat by Action Bastard and watched the scene unfolding on the other side of the parking lot. She observed in uncomfortable wonder as cars went flying every which way in the moonlight, like they were nothing but toys. "Well...holy shit."

He sent one more car sailing through the night air before he found him.

Slappy lay motionless on the ground in front of a pick up truck, his body limp and jaw slack.

"I'm not so stupid that I'd fall for this trick."he laughed then heaved a four-door above him.

Slappy's glass eyes quickly set on Ray. "Oh, good."he said then reached up and touched the front bumper of the pick up. A green arch of electricity flowed from Slappy into the truck, causing it to rev up and ignite its headlights.

Ray screamed and dropped the car. He covered his eyes and howled in pain. He collapsed to the ground, wailing and wriggling out of the beams of light.

"Oh no you don't. I'm not finished with you."Slappy jumped viciously grabbed Ray by the ankle and drug him kicking and screaming back into the light.

Ray shrieked and writhed, curling up into himself.

Slappy flipped him onto his back and stepped hard onto his chest. "Give Ray his body back!"

Ray roared at Slappy, bearing his fangs at him as black blood dripped from his eyes.

Slappy violently grabbed a handful of Ray's gold hair and dragged him closer to the head lights face first,"NOW!"he hollered.

Ray clawed at Slappy, then screamed one last time and went slack.

Slappy removed his influence from the truck and it sputtered down until it shut off and the head lights faded. He lay Ray down on the ground then flipped him over onto his back.

Ray laid still as the grave.

Slappy worried he had over done it. He cupped his cheek with his small hand and softly rubbed his thumb over Ray's cheek bone. "Ray...wake up.."he uttered trying to wake him. "Wake up kid..."

Amy timidly jogged through the cars until she reached where she last saw the light. "What the hell happened!?"

Slappy snapped his fingers on his good hand at her."Amy, I need your blood."

"What am I to you guys? A bloody soup kitchen?"she asked with her hands on her hips.

_"AMY."_

"Okay, okay!"she said and quickly knelt on the other side of Ray. She gasped at the sight of him,"Oh god..poor Ray." Amy quickly patted herself down for anything sharp. "Umm.. I'm not sure how to go about this.."

Slappy grabbed her right wrist and bit her index finger.

"OUCH! You son of a bitch!"she shrieked yanking away her hand. The sides up her finger bled from blunt teeth grooves.

"Put it in his mouth."he instructed.

Amy gave Slappy the stink eye and grumbled without mirth,"_That's what she said.._", her joke not really making any sense.

Slappy opened Ray's mouth and Amy slipped her bruised and bleeding finger in his mouth, pillowing it on his now pale tongue. They both watched him in suspense waiting for a change. Amy whispered softly to him in a gentle voice,"Wake up Ray..." she softly held his hand with her free one. "...and don't bite off my finger."

After a long suspenseful minute, Ray's face skewed up in pain and he choked and coughed on Amy's blood dripping down his throat.

"Ray!"she yelled happily, then pulled her hand away when he gagged loudly on her finger. "Ha ha, oops."

Ray lay gasping on the ground as if he had been drowned. He moaned miserably and wrapped his arms tenderly over his abdomen,"What..what happened? Why does everything hurt?"

Slappy pushed a fallen lock of hair away from Ray's eyes. "You're demon is stronger than I thought it was. I'm sorry,Ray. This is my fault."

Amy thought her eyes would fall out of her head. Did Slappy just _admit_ he screwed up _and apologize_? Maybe he was right, there was something wrong with him. A good wrong, but definitely not normal...for him anyway.

"No...oh no..."Ray squeezed his eyes shut. He was remembering it all now. He had been trapped behind the sidelines of his own mind. "I shouldn't have given him so much slack..."Ray looked at the busted up dummy by his side,"I'm sorry,Slappy."

Slappy gave a halfhearted nod. "Can you move?"he asked as he stood.

Ray tried then gave a yelp of pain. "N-no...not yet."

"Okay. I'll go get the keys. You stay here and rest."he said then looked to Amy. "You keep feeding him. I'll be back."

"Wait,Slappy!"Ray called after him.

Slappy stopped and looked back.

"How do you control your demon?"he asked hoping the answer would make him feel better.

Slappy sighed."I don't have to."

Ray and Amy looked confused.

Slappy's eyes began to glow with small amount of green light. He smiled at them,"I am the demon."

* * *

Amy puffed out her cheeks in frustration. What the hell did Slappy mean by _'he is the demon'_? Was that another way of saying _'he's the man'_?

Yeah, that made sense, sorta.

Amy really wished that one of them could explain what the hell had happened, but at the moment Ray needed her. "Stay put."she said and scampered off to go get her jacket.

"Amy..?"Ray called after her, his voice sounding unintentionally needy. He didn't want to be alone, not out here, not in this town, and not after everything that had happened tonight. He whimpered and shut his eyes as her presence left him. The ground was cold in a way that felt punishing and the wind held a familiar fragrance that made him want to vomit again. Ray had never been hit by a bus, but he was certain this is what it felt like. Ray suddenly couldn't get enough air and he couldn't stop shivering. His demon was still pushing his limits, aching for it's freedom again.

"You're a real dick...I hate you and I'm never letting you out again, so stop it."he said aloud.

There was a unsettling grumble in his chest that felt a lot like laughter that wasn't his own.

"_Parasite..._"he whispered.

"I'm back!" Amy chirped. She bounded over and sat down by him,"Can you lift your head for me?"

He was immensely relieve to see her. Trembling, Ray nodded slightly then lifted his head.

Any cheerfulness Amy had before melted like popsicle on the sidewalk at the sight of Ray's condition. He looked like a sad, sick puppy. A sad,sick puppy somebody had kicked. "Poor Ray, you look terrible. Slappy had better hurry. We need to take you home." She said and slipped her folded jacket under his head. "That should be a little better." She smiled sadly at him and fixed his hair. "Your hair is really pretty, by the way."

Ray didn't hear the compliment, all he wanted were her hands to touch him again. "Please, Amy, touching helps more than anything."he begged.

Amy smiled sympathetically at him. "Sure. If it helps, Ray."

His eyes closed and he let out a shuddering sigh when her hands rested on his face. Her finger tips that were chilled by the cold of night made her warm palms a mesmerizing contrast, drawing his attention away from his pain. His trembling calmed as the hurt dulled, her caresses ghosting over his profile like a sculptors touch. She traced his lips and jawline with those cold finger tips that smelled of dirt and Amy's own living sweetness. He felt her move closer and her hands briefly left him to cradle his arm and move it around her warm waist. Amy's hands returned to him, her comforting embrace resting on either side of his neck, finger tips faintly tangling in his softest waves at the nape. Her touch felt healing, her scent nothing but consoling after the painful hate and rage the demon had ravaged his body and soul with.

It had given him terrible strength like Slappy had said it would, but it was painful, damaging. Then again..if rage made him stronger but hurt him, could love make him vulnerable but heal him?

If felt that way as warm kisses were feathered at the corners of his mouth and and over his tear-stung eyes.

"Don't cry. It's okay. I'm sorry, I wish I was better at this."Amy lamented.

"No.."he blanketed Amy's hand with his shaking one and held it to his cheek,"..don't apologize. You shouldn't...I was the one that hurt you again. I am so sorry. "

Amy couldn't deny her throat hurt, his grip before was nearly crushing. She smiled at him,stroking her thumb beneath his eye, mixing the dried black tears with the fresh clear ones. "It's okay. I think I met you and a weird time in your life, Ray. It's cool. It's not like I'm some kind of withering violet, that's going to shrink away just because things get a little too intense."

He pulled her closer to him with one arm and moved her hand on his face to his lips and kissed her palm gratefully. "Amy, you just don't understand what I am. You're so sweet and I'm dangerous. I shouldn't be near you anymore. I shouldn't be near anybody." Tears pooled in his eyes again, the feeling of self rejection tearing him apart inside.

Amy made an aggravated noise then pinched his nose.

"Ouch!" Ray looked at her with hurt puppy dog eyes.

She made a pouting face at him,"Why does everyone think I'm ignorant? Everyone seems to think I don't understand things just because I react differently than they think they would. The way I act isn't stupid or wrong. It's just the way I am, dammit."

Ray blinked away surprised tears. He couldn't help but smile. Amy..this was Amy. He felt strong enough and sat up. He wrapped his arms that ached much less around her soft supporting body. Her buried his face in her soft hair and dropped kisses indiscriminately in it. "I love you Amy. Stay with me. Keep me here. I'm so scared of loosing myself. Love me and keep me anchored here with you. Amy..."he hugged her tighter as she hugged him back.

She hadn't realized it, how deeply Ray was hurt. Not on the battered outside, but the inside. She knew what hurt was, even if hers didn't run as deep as his, but she was dammed if she'd loose him to it. "I'm not going anywhere and neither are you."she said pressing her cheek against his chest, listening to his ragged hollow breathing. "I'll be dammed if I lose you! I'm gonna be here from now on you got that? If loving you will keep you safe then-," Amy tightened her embrace around him and yelled into his chest,"_I'm gonna love the** shit** outta you, Ray!_"

"Hurk-!"Ray grunted and loosed his grip on her. "If you keep squeezing me like that- _you might literally do it, Amy...!_"he squeaked.

"Eep!"Amy let him go quickly."Sorry!"

Ray laughed weakly. He looked down at her as she was looking up at him.

"I promised Slappy I'd help him get back on his feet and I'll the same for you too."she said then gave him a thumbs up.

Ray kissed her forehead then laid back down feeling soothed. He looked at her after settling in and gave her a thumbs up and a wink. "Alright."

Amy blushed and beamed."Right-o! By the way, the only way I'd be really mad at you is if you had trashed Action Bastard tonight. Dude, I'd be so pissed."she said and laid down beside him.

"You have some messed up priorities, you know that?"he chuckled as he tucked her in against his shoulder, he closed his eyes, and snaked his arm around her back.

"Meh." She reached and arm across his chest and snuggled her body flush to his side. "Hmmm...a girl could get used to this. Damn..I'm tired."

Ray didn't respond.

Amy perked up and listened carefully. She heard a light snore come from him and she sighed. "I guess it's nap time..." She smiled and relaxed further into him. Amy listened to the lullaby of unnaturally slow heartbeats and breaths. Her eyelids grew heavy and closed. "A nap sounds good."

* * *

Slappy held the keys in his four fingered hand and shifted tiredly on his feet. Ordinary human eyes would be blind to everything in the dark apartment except for the appearance of shining, glimmering orbs of silver-blue in the doorway.

"It's been a while. Dawes."Slappy said, eying the man cautiously.

Normally, Compton Dawes wouldn't be a problem for Slappy, but in his current condition and the fragile nature of his uncertain,unknown new pool of power he couldn't engage in anymore hasty behavior unless necessary.

Dawes tipped the edge of his big black cowboy hat at Slappy as he walked inside and closed the door behind him, locking it. "Howdy."he said without the accent commonly associated with the word. The young man dressed in an all black suit walked over to a nearby wet bar and blew the dust from a glass on the tray before he poured himself a shot of well aged whiskey from an older crystal decanter. "I wish we were meeting again under more pleasant circumstances."

Slappy folded his arms and remained silent,waiting for an explanation of his sudden appearance.

"What? No jokes?"Dawes asked before downing the alcohol."Don't tell me you've lost your sense of humor."he smirked revealing the little dimple in his chin as he removed his hat. He loosened his short blonde bangs with his free hand then poured another shot. "Your brother is making a supreme mess of things, you know?"

"I don't. I can only imagine."Slappy responded and sat in an old recliner. "So, tell me."

Dawes eyes flashed. "I'll tell you if you tell me."

"Tell you what?"Slappy asked sharply.

"_About Ray_."he said, then sipped on the whiskey this time, savoring the burn. "How is he?"

"In better shape than you left him."Slappy said, not bothering to mask his disdain.

Dawes laughed darkly. His posture slumped slightly and he sighed. "I suppose so." Dawes picked up the decanter and offered it to Slappy.

He held up his five fingered hand in dismissal."Tell me about my brother. What is he doing to my park?"

Dawes took residence in the chair across from Slappy. "He's building an army. An army of living puppets. It would be funny if it wasn't so horrifying." Dawes finished his glass, then immediately poured another.

"How did Ray get free? Does it have something to do with you or the girl out there with him?"

Slappy leaned back in his seat.  
That damn copy cat! That had been his idea!  
Wally was most likely doing it wrong too. Sloppy like he everything else he did.

Slappy glanced at Dawes,"The girl revived him with a bloody nose. How exactly is my brother turning people into living puppets?"

Dawes looked confused,"It took all the blood of a virgin the last time I had to revive him, how could just one nosebleed work? She should be dead." He waited a moment then remembered it was his turn,"Your brother isn't turning people. He's turning monsters."

Slappy's eyes widened. "Where the hell did he get the power to do that!?"he hissed.

"You didn't answer my question."Dawes replied.

Slappy furrowed his brow impatiently."I don't know."

"I don't know either." Dawes sighed and seemed to go all but boneless in his chair, utterly exhausted. He drank down his third shot. Dawes eyes held an old weariness.

"Shit."Slappy cursed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What's left of Horror Land?"

"The only non-puppets there are your brother, a woman, a little girl, and that bastard he sends out to do his dirty work." Dawes sneered down at the manky shag carpeting on the floor. "Does Ray mention me?"

"Only once." Slappy clinched his jaw then asked,"What of the boy? The little girl had an older brother, about twelve years old. Did my brother keep him or kill him?"

"I never saw a boy the last time I was there. Only a man in his early twenties that she _called_ her brother. Now that i think of it, that little girl was kind of a bitch.."he absently though aloud.

"GODDAMMIT!"Slappy roared, slamming his fists down on the arm-rests, crushing them.

Dawes was so startled he nearly dropped the whiskey jar. "Good god! What!?"

Slappy's eyes burned green brightly enough to fully illuminate the room. "I know where he got the power from!" he growled ferociously.

That solved one mystery.

"Are you sure there wasn't another woman?"he hissed.

Dawes thought to remind Slappy that he hadn't answered his question, but thought now wouldn't be the time. "No. I didn't see or sense another. No other humans are in the park."

Slappy slumped forward and held his face in his hands. He'd kill him. If Wally had killed Lindy, he would finish his brother. Even if he had to drag him to hell himself. "I'm going to stop him...but I need help to do it."

Dawes looked at him sceptically.  
Sure Slappy had just flared with an enormous show of power, but he by no means seemed a match for what his brother had become.  
"How do you plan to do it?"

"I have a plan, but I need to get to Massachusetts to get started. As a landlord myself, I'm going to assume that everything on this property belongs to you."

"As of a month ago, it came back into my possession, so yes. Why do you ask?"Dawes asked intrigued.

Slappy tossed the keys to Action Bastard to him. "I want this car."

Dawes eyed the keys,"I could get you a new car instead."

"No. Only this car. It's a personal preference."

Dawes smiled."I guess it takes an antique to appreciate an antique."

"Watch who you're calling an antique, old man."Slappy smirked.

"Alright. I'll have my secretary write up the legal papers."he said smiling. Perhaps the booze was finally hitting him.

After a pause Slappy remembered Dawes question. "Dawes." Slappy said standing up. "To be honest, Ray doesn't think of you fondly. I don't think it would make him happy to see you again, if that is what you are thinking of doing."

"I guess not."he sighed as his young features became drawn and forlorn. He rose to his feet and replaced the half drunk bottle of alcohol back in it's resting place on the dusty wet bar. "It was good to see you again, Slappy. I'll send the papers to Miss Kramer's house by Friday for her to have notarized."

Slappy felt alarmed."How long have you been watching her?"he asked, his voice low.

"Not her. Ray. I never take my eye off of him for too long."he corrected as he put his hat back on.

"He isn't yours anymore, you know."Slappy reminded him.

Dawes scowled at the reminder of Ray's change of ownership. "Part of him will always be mine. Some things can never be undone."

"Marks remain."Slappy finished darkly.

The two monsters regarded one another in the dark, a silent acknowledgment of something unmentionable between them. This was the closest they could ever come to being friends.

"Take care of him for me."Dawes said before opening the door and leaving the time capsule of an apartment.

Slappy watched him go. "I'll make him strong enough to come pay you a visit one day."

Dawes smiled over his shoulder at the dummy. "I'd like that. Goodbye, 'partner'."he said with a tilt of his hat then faded away through the doorway.

Slappy relaxed and sighed. There was no way of removing Dawes' faint scent from him. Ray had already been through enough tonight, he hope this wouldn't drive the kid over the edge.


	15. Chapter 15

Slappy's eye twitched. "God..dammit." He glared at Amy and Ray snuggled up together on the ground sleeping.

Was he going to have to get the hose after those two?

"Hey, you two wake up." Slappy nudged Amy's shoulder with his foot then waited.

_Nothing._

Dammit, he was too tired for this! "Wake up, slave!" he yelled and kicked Amy's butt.

"YAAA!"Amy yelped and yanked on Ray's shirt in surprise. "Ouch! That hurt!" Amy sat up, still drowsy from her rude awakening. Amy spotted Slappy and frowned. "What's with you?"she asked and rubbing her bottom.

"The sun is coming up soon. We need to go."Slappy said flatly.

He was being stoic as usual, but there was a twinge of further annoyance in his eyes that she knew was directed at her. She looked down to Ray beside her.

_Oh yeah. Probably something about that. Whatever, he would just have to get over it._

"Ray? Hey wake up."she said and gently shook him. He didn't respond. "Ray?"she said again more urgently.

Slappy groaned then glared at her. "You didn't feed him, did you?"

Amy cringed in her skin. "Nope..."she said looking as though her admission caused her physical discomfort.

Slappy face-palmed. "Goddammit Amy."

Amy looked at him truly apologetic. "I'm sorry. Is he going to be okay?"

Slappy was far, far too tired. So tired he couldn't even manage to feel indignant. "Yes, but you're going to have to carry him home. And he'll have a hell of a headache when he wakes up."

Amy rubbed her shoulders and looked Ray over, trying to figure out the best way to pick him up. Amy shrugged then sat on him reverse cowgirl,"With our current track record, I never thought I'd have trouble getting Ray on top of me..."she joked, then with awkward effort she grabbed him by the arms and pulled him onto her back.

Slappy didn't think the joke was funny at all. It made him want to kick Ray's ass and flush Amy's seashell collection down to toilet.

"Holy crap..! He's heavier than I thought..."she grunted out and stumbled a bit before hopping a few times to settle Ray on her back securely.

"Are you done?"Slappy asked tiredly.

Amy looked behind her to give Slappy the stink-eye, but stopped. He looked really exhausted. "Are you okay?"

Slappy's shoulders slumped and he sighed,"I'm fine. Let's go home,_ please._"he lied with his eyes half-lidded, trudging past her.

She made a duck-face of disapproval. "Since when do you say please? Or have any manners to begin with?"she asked lumbering after him.

"I don't know Amy. It's just the way I am right now."he said feeling like he was on autopilot.

"I suppose even pride and bravado have their limits."she commented keeping in stride with him.

He gave her a weary blank expression. "I can't have this exchange with you at the moment. Can we just be quiet for the rest of our hike?"

Amy huffed,"Fine."

* * *

It took much longer to get back to the Kramer homestead than Slappy had thought. The pink blush of sunrise illuminated the sky as they walked through the garage door. He held the door open for Amy carrying Ray before quietly closing the door behind them.

Wordlessly they made their way to the basement. This time Slappy helped Amy down the stairs. She had hauled Ray for at least three miles by herself and her legs had to be ready to give out on her soon.

Amy moaned in relief as she lay Ray down on the big orange couch. As if reading her mind, Slappy handed her an old crocheted pillow and she slipped it under his head. She smiled at Ray's sleeping form lovingly before positioning his body more comfortable position and brushed his long bangs away from his eyes with shaking hands.

Amy held her hands out and realized that they were shaking pretty bad. She had over exerted herself and would need to drink some water and take some pain medicine before she lay down herself. She stood up only to have her legs buckle beneath her in protest. Amy barely caught herself on her hands before she could smack her head on the cold concrete floor. She sat there panting for half a minute before she noticed Slappy beside her with his hand on her shoulder. He looked at her with mild concern. Amy nodded at him as if to say she was okay and tried standing up again, this time more slowly. Once she found her footing they walked up stairs to go to her room.

Amy was surprised when Slappy detoured to the bathroom. She followed him and to her further surprise he turned on the shower and began to undress. She watched as each ripped,ruined piece of clothing fell to the floor until he was only in a pair of black boxer briefs she had made a while back. They fit Slappy a heck of a lot better than they did Dennis. His frame was a perfect model for her seamstress work. Dennis had under gone a similar transformation in the first month after coming to life, but he was in no way as accentuated or complex as Slappy's form was now. Or beaten up. Amy felt a new wave of guilt wash over her before a second wave of gratitude followed it. He had kinda been a bad-ass.

Slappy stepped under the hot shower and closed his eyes. Dirt and grim swirled and eddied at his feet before going down the drain. He didn't even want to look at himself right now. He had to look awful. He could feel each gash in his form as water bubbled and flowed over them. He would probably swell a bit from this, but damn it was soothing. The water was so mesmerizing that he didn't notice Amy until she was closing the shower door behind her. He looked down and was happy to see he had kept his shorts on. The last thing he needed was her poking fun at him for having that _thing_ down there now. Amy turned on the second shower head on the opposite side of the shower. After a few moments, he could smell the sweet fragrance of whatever shampoo she was using and felt himself relax further.

"_Was that..vanilla? ...probably._"he thought sluggishly.

Slappy had almost fallen asleep on his feet when he felt the warm wash cloth on his back. It woke him and he glanced back to see Amy knelt down on her knees behind him. She looked tired, but oddly content. She wouldn't meet his gaze but focused instead on washing him.

He'd be a dirty liar if he said it didn't feel good. It wasn't like the brutish bathing she gave him the first time they had been here. This time, her hands were careful, her touch was tender...and he was too tired to protest anyway. Slappy tilted his head back to let the water rain on his face. His eye brows twitched when her hands made it down to legs and hips. She was getting too close for comfort to that part of his new body. His hand caught hers and took the soapy white cloth from her. "I've got the rest. I'll meet you in bed."

Amy blushed at his words, feeling a little silly, but she was too tired to put up any false pretenses either. She pressed a chaste kiss at the nape of his neck before leaving the shower to dry off and take some medicine.

Slappy stood wide awake and rigid after she left.

_Did..did she just kiss me?!_

He touched the back of his neck on the spot. It was still tingling from the brief contact. "Goddammit, Amy.."he murmured. Then he noticed, he had five fingers on his hand again. He sighed in relief. He was starting to worry he had lost the ability to heal. His gashes had become more shallow and he touched them thoughtfully.

Slappy turned off the water and stepped onto the bath mat.

It was soaked.

He groaned. Amy really needed to stop doing that. He looked and found a small towel she had set out for him on the chair. Oh well, the floor would just have to stay that way this time. After securing the towel around his waist he slipped out of his wet underwear and rung it out in the shower. He hung them on the bar inside with the other wash cloths to dry before heading to the bedroom.

The door was cracked and he came in quietly. Amy was brushing her hair, wearing nothing but an over sized steel-blue t-shirt with an ultramarine owl print on the front. She looked at him. A smile tugged at the edges of her mouth then she pointed at a pair of grey lounge pants at the end of the bed. Slappy felt dazed. Why the hell couldn't she be this quiet and agreeable all the time?

"I'm going to go brush my teeth."she whispered then picked up her light orange towel from the floor and left him to get dressed.

He watched her go.  
When her back was to him, he impishly crouched down slightly and checked to see what color of underwear she was wearing.  
He smiled to himself.  
_Black silk.  
_

He mentally noted that shirt she was wearing was _his_ color. Ultramarine was the color he associated himself with and as far as he was concerned, she was wearing him, subconsciously or not.

He smirked and dropped his towel. He still avoided looking down, for some reason that thing made him beyond uncomfortable. It wasn't something he wanted to look at again. He walked to the bed and slipped into the pants before turning down the blanket and climbing in. It would be nice to have a shirt, but oh well. He laid down and the moment his head hit the pillow his exhaustion came rushing back. He dozed off quickly, only waking when Amy slipped into bed beside him.

Amy pulled the curtains closed after brushing her teeth and taping a note to her parents on the outside of her door saying she was having menstrual cramps and wouldn't be going to school today. Ah, the default excuse of all women everywhere.

She climbed into bed with Slappy who was already sleeping. He looked serene laying on his back with a hand resting on his chest. Looking at him like this, in her room safe, clean and warm...it was hard to believe all the horrifying things that had happened only hours ago had really transpired.  
Only their injuries remained as a reminder.  
On the bright side, he did look much better now and his finger was back too. She pulled the blanket up higher on him then had an urge for the second time that night. "_Hell, why not? Yolo..or something..._"she thought then kissed the scratches on his cheek.

"_Keep doing that and I'll make you marry me.._"he murmured sleepily.

Amy laughed softly at his joke. Later, she would learn that he wasn't really kidding, but right now she nestled into her pillow and for all intent and purposes passed out.

Slappy's last abstract thought before falling asleep was that Amy's kisses smelled like cinnamon.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon and Amy sat on Dennis futon in his room with her foot propped up on the seat his office chair.

"Thanks Dennis."Amy said sincerely as he finished bandaging her ankle.

"That looks like it could turn on you and get infected easily."he pondered aloud. "I'll call Dr. Hanson and ask him to call you in some antibiotics." Dennis took out his cell phone. "What happened to it? That is a_ pretty jagged_ tear."

"Ummm.."Amy thought about it. It'd be better not to say. "You don't want to know."

Dennis raised his eye brows at her,"If I didn't want to know then I wouldn't ask, Amy." Dennis put the smart phone to his ear,"Hello, this is Dennis Kramer. I need to have Dr. Hanson call in a Z-pack for Amy Kramer." He paused,"Yes, she is doing fine. She's got a nasty laceration on her ankle, though."He looked at her bandage then back up at Amy and seemed to smile,"No, stitches aren't necessary and yes, she's turning sixteen next February." Dennis suddenly laughed,"Tell me about it. For most people it would take a lifetime to come in so often, but you know our Amy."

Amy grimaced at the way they were so candidly talking about her. Although, she couldn't get too mad, seeing as how it was true and all, but hey, if being accident proned got her out of having to go into the office this time it was worth it.

"Alrighty, I'll see you at the hospital later. Dr. Reuter is going to have us do rounds in the maternity ward. Should be fun. Goodbye, Elisabeth." He ended the call and looked up at amy. "Okie doki."he said sounding far too dorky. He sat in his chair and patted his knees and waited.

Amy hated the awkward silences between them since last year, when he chose Sara over her. She honestly wasn't mad anymore...just hurt. "So..babies huh?"she asked.

Dennis perked up,"Oh yeah. I'm not going into pediatrics or anything, it's just a required class."

Amy nodded. "Alright...good for you."

_Silence._

"Hey, Amy..." Something had been bothering him constantly lately and, since he had Amy alone for the first time in months, he was just going to go for it,"..where's Slappy?"he asked, already knowing the answer.

"He's still in bed. I don't think he'll be too upset about sleeping in past three this time."she said smirking.

"About that..."Dennis coughed then forced himself to make eye contact with her. "I don't think you should sleep with him."

Amy laughed. "What? Are you jealous?"she joked.

"Huh? No! What?"he blathered and looked away.

Amy laughed again. "You are! Ha. Well, you're too late now, buster."

"What, so you belong to Slappy after all?"he jeered.

Amy looked at him wide eyed and frowning hard."NOOOOO..."

Dennis laughed,"I doubt even he's going to be able to handle you, honestly."

He missed this, it was the longest conversation they had had in months.

"I don't know. Maybe not. It's not like this is permanent anyway. "She said tapping her foot in the air, testing the fit of the bandage. "All I need to do is help Slappy kick his brother's ass. I honestly don't know why we can't just bust up in there and torch him. Seriously, I've got like; three jars of kerosene, eighteen lighters, and forty some odd matchbooks in my room. I'd be easy."she shrugged.

Dennis just stared at her wide eyed a few moments with an uncomfortable air to him. "Amy, you shouldn't have any of that stuff."

Amy balked, she threw her arms in the air in an aggravated gesture."Oh my god! Not you too!"

"I'm sorry, it's just..well.._you know_."he said motioning to the kitchen then the garage.

Amy crossed her arms. "They were accidents! I didn't do it on purpose..and it's not like anyone else was home when they happened, anyway."

Dennis tapped his chin,"Convenient.."he teased.

"Hey, shut up!"she said giving a playful kick at him as he put his first aid kit back together.

Dennis swatted back at her. "Be careful. We might need this again later. Like in an hour, when you fall down the stairs or something."

Even with the weirdness between them for so long Dennis always patched her up whenever she was hurt. "Thank you, Dennis."

"Anytime, Amy." He locked his kit and wiped his hands with a second antibacterial wipe."I have to get back to work. Let me know if you need anything."

"Got it."Amy said smiling broadly.

Maybe she was finally over it. Then again, she still thought her sister was a total bitch...and maybe that's who she was really mad at to begin with.


	16. Chapter 16

Amy carefully closed the door to the basement. She had taken Ray another blanket since it was going to be the first hard freeze of the season tonight. She sighed. "It's seven and neither of them are awake yet. How long are they going to sleep?"

The phone rang and she trotted into the kitchen.

Amy picked up the retro wall phone and answered. "Hello?"

"Amy?"Margo said on the other end.

"Margo!"Amy chirped happily. With her sister at an art show with their parents, Dennis at the hospital, then Jed staying over at a friends house, the house was eerily quiet. Margo's voice was a welcome distraction. "What's up girl?"

"Not too much. Hey, are you still going to be able to work this weekend?"she asked.

Amy hopped onto the kitchen counter,"Yeah, totally! Do you want me to come in tomorrow night or should I wait til' Saturday?

"Oh my gosh, tomorrow would be great!"Margo sighed,"Dad is ALL booked up this weekend. It's going to be BANANAS."

"Oh really..?" Hopefully this wasn't going to be more than she bargained for. Amy needed to ask," Umm...should I expect any 'costume' parties?"

Margo groaned,"Yes, sorry. I wish dad would stop hosting those things. I'm starting to think he's being blackmailed or something."

Amy made a face at the phone,"Maybe he's just a dirty old man?"

Margo burst out laughing."Eww gross! I hope not!"

Amy smiled. She wasn't joking. All the same, she loved making Margo laugh."Me too. Well, do you think your dad needs any alterations done to the costumes?"

"Actually, yeah! That'd be great! I think I've been putting on weight. I'm so fat! My boyfriend is gonna dump me if I don't loose weight, I'm so miserable!"

It baffled Amy how such a stereotypical girl could be her best friend, but some how they worked."Oh come on. You weigh like what? A hundred pounds? You're a total fairy, Margo. I could pick you up, put you in my pocket, and run away with no one the wiser."

"Thanks Amy."she said lack luster.

Amy changed to subject. "So what kind of damage is the schedule this weekend?"

"Ummm..let me look." Margo mumbled and the sound of papers fluttering in the background. "Twelve birthday parties, two reunions, two dinner conferences, and one wedding reception."

"Yeesh."Amy hopped off the counter and readjusted her leggings waist band further up her hips. It WAS going to busy as hell. She supposed that meant more money, though..

"I told you so."Margo replied.

Amy held the phone to her ear with her shoulder and dusted off her tush. Seems she had sat in breadcrumbs."Whelp, I better get started on those costumes."

"Do you want to come get them tonight? I'm all alone right now."she purred.

Huh..? Did she just hear Margo right? Amy blushed at the tinge of innuendo in her friends voice. "Sure, it's been a while since I went for a bus ride."

"Okay! I'll see you when you get here!"Margo said happily and hung up.

"Well, okay then. Glad I'll have something to do tonight instead of waiting for those two to wake up." Amy hung up and hurried to get her backpack and sweater.

* * *

Amy snuggled the plush collar of her extra large dark blue sweater with white stars against her face to help keep her lips from getting chapped in the cold wind.

"It's monkeys out tonight!"she said rubbing her arms. The light from the bus stop faded behind her as she jogged down an alleyway. This was a direct path to downtown that locals used, because tourist wouldn't take since it was so poorly lit. Clacking of her knee high boots resounded off the brunt,windowless backsides of the shops and lofts towering on either side of her. Lights or doors were far and few in between her and her destination. When Amy was starting to have to squint to see a few feet ahead of her, she decided it was time to whip out her phone. "YAAH!" she yelled. After walking in darkness, the light from her phone was so bright it felt like it could have burned her eyeballs out. When her eyes readjusted she groaned,"Oh dammit. 31% battery left?"she crinkled her nose, then went through the settings to turn the brightness to zero.

Murmuring.

Amy looked up from her phone, alert. She thought she heard something.

_Nothing. Just her._

"Hmm.."Amy made another adjustment to her phone before turning the screen off and then back on again, leaving it on it's lock screen. She felt like she was being watched. Her phone shut off after thirty seconds, so that would help her conserve power.

"Okay..on for thirty off for thirty."she said verbally asserting her method and hurried down the worn back alley. Amy keep this going until she came out at the center of the town.

The hot smell of evening food carts hit her the moment she stepped out of the cold ally. The center of downtown was a bustle around it's core, Gaylord Park. The name had no end to dirty jokes associate with it,but for it's usual visitors that suited it just fine. The small park was littered with mostly young people, primarily university students and tourist, all loitering about. They always showed up in Margo's town around this time of the year for all the Halloween events and fall foliage.

She passed a small herd of giggling women who were obviously tipsy. Amy looked at them as they passed by in their joy.

Next she was nearly stampeded by a bunch of college guys wearing lopsided,cheesy-looking red-devil masks. They came from out of nowhere charging through hooting and hollering.

She hurried to the other side of the circular park, dodging couples and enjoying the twinkling string lights illuminating various trees like little stars. She jumped one of the low field stone walls that encircled the park, then crossed the busy road. Amy could feel heavy bass reverberations coming from a grand white stone building straight ahead.

The Party House was once a sprawling historical estate that had been in Margo's family for generations. Margo and her dad were pretty far removed from the family when it came to be owned by them, but they were the only people left in the original owner's bloodline.

_Lucky break._

Amy was greeted at the door by a concierge she had never met before who only let her in after making a phone call to Margo's dad. "Thanks buddy."she said and gave him a sloppy salute then entered the to the main lobby. It was gorgeous to say the least. A huge white marble fountain bubbled and flowed proudly encircled by twin mahogany grand staircases covered in cascading red carpet. The ceiling went up three floors with glass closing in each story so that everyone could view the grand entrance if they wanted to. It was quite impressive.

Even with all the loud teenagers crawling all over the place.

Amy yelled and pushed idiots, forcing her way though a crowd of partying teenagers. It had to be some girl's birthday party or something along those lines. The music was so loud and obnoxiously pop-sugar that it was giving her a headache and a toothache.

Amy finally made it to the service corridor and sighed in relief. "Jesus, it's a THURSDAY. What is wrong with those people?"she grouched. Amy stress levels decreased drastically after she started down the narrow hall. The service corridors were one of her favorite parts of the old estate. They snaked all around ever room and even led to secret places the original owners had used for bootlegging and other illegal stuff back in the day. It was an honest-to-god labyrinth and you'd get lost for hours if you didn't know your way around.

It took Amy a little longer to get to Margo, because other staff kept stopping her to talk on her way. She didn't mind, they were all older than her but she felt a hell of a lot more comfortable talking to them than any of the other teenagers in the party rooms. She realized an hour had passed before she excused herself from the sordid conversation in employee break room.

It's was where she got her potty mouth.

The old musicians, servers, and various other staff bid her goodbye and she finally made it out the back door into the icy night air. Just across an English garden was the 'Belle Haus'. It was a comparably small house that Margo and her dad lived in. It was quieter here and she welcomed the idea of somewhere with thick sound insulation.

Amy tossed a pebble at Margo's window on the top story.

The blinds in the window rolled up and Margo appeared in the window. She lit up and started waving at Amy before disappearing from the window, only to appear a few seconds later at the front door. "Amy! You made it!"she exclaimed happily.

Amy waved at Margo as she walked up to the threshold. "Yo! Sorry I'm late. Big party going on in there."she said grinning.

Margo was still tiny as ever. She was very petite and had a whispery voice like a cross between a half-baked hippie and a fairy princess. Her hair was straight and blonde with long streaks of pink that made her blue eyes look more aqua. She was wearing a big Beatles t-shirt and ripped up designer jeans that probably cost more than Amy's entire savings so far. Margo grabbed Amy excitedly and drug her inside."I want you to meet someone!"she cooed happily.

"Really? I thought you said you were alone."Amy asked feeling unprepared.

Margo scrunched up her face cutely and gave Amy a pinch,"I was, but you took so long that I invited someone else over too!"

"Sorry."Amy blushed and apologized. "So who is it?"

The thing about Margo was that she loved The Beatles. She didn't listen to much else and tonight was no exception.

_'Hello,Goodbye'_ was playing on the stereo when she appeared in the arched doorway between the foyer. Her bright blue eyes were friendly and rimmed with long,dark black eyelashes. The girl was a little taller than her and had inky-black short hair that was styled in a modern finger wave.  
_Amy instantly loved it._  
She was dressed in a long sleeved dress shirt with the top three buttons undone and a pair of brown corduroy pants with suspenders. She smiled at Amy and offered a hand to her.

"Hi, I'm Lizzy."she said.

Amy had never been so starstruck. She didn't realize she was just standing there like a big goof until Margo elbowed her in the ribs. "Oh,sorry!" Amy laughed nervously, suddenly feeling a lot like Ray. "I'm Amy,"she said finally taking the other girl's hand and shaking it firmly. Amy pointed up to something unseen,"I guess the song says the rest."she joked as the final swell of the song played.

Lizzy laughed,"Do you like the Beatles too?"

"It's kinda a requirement if you want to be Margo's friend."Amy gestured to Margo.

Lizzy smiled widely."I'm picking up on that."

Margo blushed and kicked at the floor,"Am I really that bad?"

Amy laughed,"Yes. Very."

Margo straightened up and puffed out her chest. "Well, I'm going to take that as a compliment."she said smiling.

Amy shrugged at her as_ 'Across the Universe'_ started up,"I honestly can't complain. I went through a Bob Marley phase not long ago."

"You like Bob?"Lizzy asked with interest.

Amy raised her eye brows,"Lots, how about you?"

"He's great. My favorite song is 'Three Little Birds'."she replied.

"Cool."Amy said smiling. That was most people's favorite.

"Amy, lets go look at the costumes!"Margo said cheerfully and bolted for the stairs. Amy shrugged at Lizzy and scuttled after Margo.

Margo's room was wallpapered with Beatles posters and had a distinctive British theme. She made a bee-line to her walk-in closet.

It still dazzled Amy at how ridiculously huge it was, bigger than Amy's whole bedroom twice over.

"Here they are!" Margo pipped picking up a mass of black and white frilly lace and ribbons.

"Wow. That's what we're supposed to wear tomorrow?" Lizzy said looking at the Lolita-esqe dresses.

Amy looked at Lizzy,"You're working too?"

Lizzy nodded."Yeah, I think I'd do anything to get away from my brother and his friend Clay." She held up a dress,"Even this."

Margo sighed,"At least it pays well."

Lizzy quirked a brow at Margo,"Then why are you working? Aren't you already stinking rich?"

Amy's blood pressure dropped and she couldn't hide her ghastly expression. The last time Amy had mention anything about the difference in their financial situation Margo had flipped out.  
Margo had lived with her mother for the first half of her life. They had been really poor and when her mom died her dad was given custody. She hated for anyone to treat her differently just because she was rich now. Or mention it.

To Amy's surprise all Margo did was blush and laugh. "I know. It's just the principal of it."she said hugging what was to be her dress.

Amy smiled at her friend,"Margo isn't an entitled bitch like some of the people that come here. That's what makes her so cool." Amy pulled Margo into a one armed hug. "You're the best Margo."

"Amy..you're embarrassing me..."she said shyly against Amy's chest.

Lizzy felt awkward now. She hadn't realized it was a sore subject. "Umm...so, why are you working this weekend, Amy?"she asked trying to move the conversation into a more comfortable direction.

"Ooo! That's right! You said you needed it to cover traveling expenses? Where are you going?"Margo asked in her usual peppy way.

"Ehh..."Amy wasn't sure how to respond."Well...I'm going on a road trip to Boston with some friends. I promised to help him with a problem he has with his brother."she said.

"HE..?"Margo looked at Amy with pure joy. "Oh my goodness, Amy! Who is he? Where did you meet him?"

Amy backed away from Margo. She was so excited that she kinda looked like a lemur hopped up on coffee. "Umm...I met him a while ago...you don't know him. He was only around for a short time." Amy smiled uncomfortably.

"What..? Really..? well..why didn't you introduce me?"Margo asked looking hurt.

Amy couldn't tell her that she_ had_ met him,"He was kind of a jerk.."Amy couldn't resist,"..and a dummy." she said the last part flatly.

Lizzy flinched. _She hated that word._

"Well, why are you helping him now? Did something change?"Margo asked, riveted.

"Uh, sorta. I mean...it's been a few years you know? I guess he grew in that time..." Amy felt herself blushing. Thinking about how Slappy had changed now, she realized she really liked it...and maybe..  
Amy quickly slapped her cheeks to shut her brain up. "He begged me to help him anyway! He's still a jerk, but I think his brother is an even bigger jerk. You know how much I hate jerks!"she ranted.

Lizzy chuckled at Amy then put her dress on over her clothes,"So what's in Boston?"

Amy cheeks stung. She quickly distracted herself by jumping straight into sewing mode. She practically pounced on Lizzy and started pulling at the seams, fitting it visually to Lizzy's form."Just..some guy he knows. I think he has dirt on his brother..or something."

Lizzy smirked over her shoulder at Amy,"That sounds like some pretty vague reasons to go to all this trouble for a guy who you think is a jerk.."she teased.

Amy puffed out her cheeks and blushes fiercely. "It's not like it's anything romantic! He's still a little dummy!" Amy fussily took a measuring ribbon and a notebook out of her backpack.

"Well, I'd like to meet him. Can you bring him over tomorrow?"Margo asked as she popped up beside Amy in her pink bra and underwear.

Another thing about Margo, she wasn't modest around other girls.

Lizzy and Amy stared at her while she slipped on her dress that looked like it fit perfectly.

Lizzy looked at Amy, not sure how to feel about the awkward situation.

Amy looked at her and shrugged,"Tits and ass."

Lizzy held back an amused laugh. "Tits and ass."

"Tits and ass?"Margo asked in her airy voice as she tied the bow around her waist.

Amy burst out laughing because that sounded really funny coming out of Margo.

"Look, Margo... just because your naked bod hasn't got anything another girl doesn't already have, it doesn't mean you can run around naked all the time."she laughed.

The innocent look in Margo's eyes was a thing of beauty,"-but I'm not even naked..?

Amy sighed. "Never mind. Lizzy, let me get your measurements."

Lizzy stuck her arms out like a 't'. "Go nuts! Let's see how I measure up."

Amy smirked at Lizzy's pun and wrapped the ribbon around her waist. "What's your favorite color, Liz?"

Lizzy widened her stance so Amy could get to her inseam,"I really like lots of colors, but I think if I had to choose it would be salmon."

"Hey,hey..name dropping here."Amy smiled impishly at Lizzy.

She liked Lizzy. There was something about her that Amy couldn't put her finger on, but _really liked_.

Amy pointed at Margo's mirrored doors,"Okay, look in the mirror and tell me how you would change this dress if you could."

Lizzy spun around like an uncoordinated ballerina, then looked at herself. "Oh my god.."she said in disgust,"...everything." The frilly atrocity fit like a hefty bag. It made her look like a misshapen penguin. "Dresses are not my thing."

"Me either."Amy said as she jotted down Lizzy's numbers and preferences."How about I just make some lucky guesses at what you'd like?"

"Sounds good to me." Lizzy pulled the dress off. " Margo says you're talented, so I put my fate in your hands." Lizzy handed the dress over to Amy who slipped it on a hanger then bunched it together with four other dresses.

"I won't let you down. Kinda'_ can't_ with the derpy way these dresses look. There's only room for improvement."Amy said slipping a garment sleeve over frilly mess.

"Let me re-measured you Margo, just to be sure."Amy said and motioned her over. It took a minute and Amy an adjustment in her notebook."Ha. Your boobs got bigger, Margo."

"Really!?"she exclaimed.

Amy started gathering up her things and the dresses. "Okay, guys this has been great, but I gotta get going or I'll miss the next night bus back to my town."

The girls walked her to the door and said goodbye. "It was really great to meet you, Amy."Lizzy said and gave her another hand shake.

"Yeah, same here."Amy tilted her head to the side. "Something seems familiar about you. I hope that doesn't sound weird."

Lizzy's eyes went wide. "I've felt the same way since we met! How weird..I know we've never met before."

"Maybe you knew each other in a past life or something?"Margo interjected.

Amy smirked impishly at Lizzy, "Maybe I was your boyfriend?"

Lizzy laughed,"Maybe I was yours!"

"Yeah,"Amy giggled and agreed.

Margo smacked Amy on the butt playfully,"Amy get going! You're going to miss your bus. I'd feel awful if something happened to you."

"Okay, I'm going."Amy strode away and waved over her shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow! G'night girls!"

* * *

They watched Amy disappear into The Party House then went back inside.

Lizzy looked at the clock. It was ten thirty."Hey, Margo, could I stay here tonight?"

Margo smiled."Sure!"

Lizzy sighed in relief then pulled her phone out to check her blog. "Thanks so much. I can't stand another night at my brother's friends house. They are so annoying! I hope our house will finish fumigating soon.."she groaned and flopped down on the couch in the living room.

Lizzy stared at the ceiling. Why couldn't she shake the feeling there was something so familiar about Amy?

"Lizzy, do you want to take a bath?"Margo asked from the other room.

"Huh..?" Lizzy sat up quickly. "Totally, that would be great!" Lizzy said then froze.

"Yay! Do you like bubbles, because I love bubbles!"Margo cheered in the doorway. She was completely naked and holding a bottle of champagne shaped bubble bath.

Lizzy blushed all the way down to her toes.

* * *

The walk through the park was well, a walk through the park this time around. Most of the revelers had either dispersed or had been arrested at this point in the night. Only some locals were out quietly conversing on benches. She nodded to them when she walked by as a brief acknowledgment then went on her way.

There was one vender left who was closing up shop. "Yo!"Amy chirped to him as she scuttled up briskly,"Have you got anything hot left?"

The older woman who was wrapped up in a thick yellow coat and orange scarp and mittens smiled,"Just some Apple Cider and coffee. Want some? You can be my last customer of the night."

"Deal!"Amy reached in her pocket and handed over a fiver,"Apple cider,please."

The lady filled up an insulated cup with the hot, concentrated liquid and passed it over, then took the money."There you go, sweetie."

Amy took the warm sweet smelling cup."Thanks, keep the change."she said with a smile and hurried off.

The hot liquid was a great comfort once she entered the freezing alley. She set a steady pace hoping she hadn't wasted too much time. The night bus waited for no one.

Amy briefly stopped at the halfway point to check her backpack making sure the dresses hanging on it weren't dragging the ground. When she looked back up she jumped in surprise. "Woah!"

_There was a shop._

Just to her right-_where she knew there had never been anything there before but an ancient brick wall_\- was a shop front.

Gas lamps flickered outside the blackened wooden entrance door. To the left of the entrance was a large pane-less window with grotesque Halloween masks displayed.

"Whut kinda fuckery is this...?"she asked herself in a low slightly masculine voice, feeling drawn closer to inspect further. She sipped her cider as she came closer to the glass. They looked real...

"I wonder if it's anybody Slappy knows..?"she asked looking closer inside. It was dark but if she squinted she could see movement further in. She glanced down. There was an 'OPEN' sign.

This was definitely something from Slappy's world. That thought made her even more curious to find out what was behind the ominous facade of the shop front.

"I probably shouldn't go in..."she said narrowing her eyes at the wrought iron door handle. It took her all of a second before she grabbed it and walked in.

It smelled like mothballs and dust.

She walked in and the door closed on it's own behind her. Amy shifted on her feet and surveyed the inside. It was like an old general store, only instead of groceries or home goods there were all manner of oddities in jars, vials, bags, and bunches on thick old wooden shelves. Amy saw one thing that didn't look like it belonged back in the early 1800's.

A camera at the register looked shiny and new. And weird. She set her drink down on the counter then picked up the metal monster. "Wow, it's light."she marveled aloud. She turned in in all directions,"What is this? A Polaroid or something?"

"I'm afraid you can't have that in here,my dear."

Amy jumped and tossed the camera in the air. She frantically fumbled trying to catch it again,"_Oh shit-Oh shit-Oh shit!_"she cursed until she held it securely again. This ugly thing had to cost a fortune and all she had left on her was a twenty.

"Charming."the voice said again, sounding much like Christopher Lee. An old man, in his fifties or more, pushed aside a black curtain behind the counter and approached her.

'_Ben Franklin_' was the first thought to come to her mind when she saw him. "I, uh.."Amy quickly set the camera back down where it was before,"..pardon me?"she asked not understanding his previous statement.

"No food or beverages in the shop."he replied.

Amy looked at her drink. "Oh, sorry. There wasn't a sign."

He looked at her with a condescending stare. "Hmmm...well _now you know_."

She was starting to not like him, but she wanted a few answers before she left. "So, you're new around here, huh?"

"So it would seem."

Talkative, wasn't he? "What brought you to these parts?"she continued.

His grimace remained unchanged. "The previous location became unfavorable."

"Ah."Amy patted out a short rhythm on the counter and glanced around the shop a moment. "What is all this stuff?"

His stare turned colder,"If you don't know, then you shouldn't be here."

Okay, this was going nowhere, but she was not leaving without something more than one sentence responses. She noticed some tiny figurines closer to the cash register. She picked one of the little green horned monsters up and examined it. "Cute toys."

The left corner of his mouth pulled ever so lightly into a faint smirk. "Take one home with you."

Amy looked back at him with raised brows. She saw the twinkle in his eye and smiled at him. "Thanks, but I have enough monsters at home already." She set the figure back with the others. "I don't suppose you know anything about dummies?"

He narrowed his eyes a fraction. "I might."

That would do. That little flash of understanding in his eyes was all she needed. Amy picked up her drink," I'll have to ask you more about them some time,Ben."she said and turned to leave.

"Chiller."he said.

Amy looked back at him.

"My name is Johnathan Chiller."he said ever stoic.

Amy grinned,"I'm Amy. I'll see you around, John."she winked at him with a tilt of her drink then left the shop.

When she shut the door she gave the window one last look to see that one of the masks were gone. The green-goblin looking one with the scratches and bad overbite had disappeared.

"Huh..."Amy wondered absently, then took out her phone and take a look at the time.

_Her bus was scheduled to arrive in three minutes!_

"Oh crap! I'm gonna miss my bus!"she shouted at her phone then took off running.


	17. Chapter 17

Amy finally made it home around midnight. When she walked in the house was dark and there was music coming from the basement.

_Sounded Jazzy or Blues-y..._

"Ray? Slappy?"Amy called as closed the front door behind her.

No answer. Amy flicked on a side lamp and looked around.

Nothing seemed out of place, so she casually finished dressing down, She slipped her cold weather things in the hall closet with her boots.

"I wonder which one of them likes that kind of music?"she wonder aloud and hefted her pack and dresses on her shoulder, then headed to the basement.

She descended during a harmonica solo and stopped, wide-mouth at the bottom of the stairs.

"No freaking way..."

Ray stopped playing when he saw Amy. "Hey, you're back."he said smiling broadly at her.

"Seriously?"Amy said wearing a ridiculously wide grin,"That was you? You play the harmonica?"she walked over and looked at the harmonica in his hand. "Where did you get that?"

"We found a couple in some of your dad's, I guess, college stuff when we were moving things around down here."he said smiling back.

"Huh...I didn't know Dad played a harmonica."she said in wonder, then she sneered,"Ew, you washed it first,right?"

"Not that it could get me sick, but yes. I gave her a through cleaning."he said flipping the red and silver harmonica with one hand. "I'll wash the others later when we have time."

"Time?"Amy asked as she crossed over to her sewing corner. "What's up?"

"We're practicing. So be quiet and don't interrupt."Slappy interjected then lit another pillar candle atop an old studio size piano on the other side of the room.

"We? Don't tell me you play the piano?"Amy asked incredulously. She pulled the dresses out of their cover and hung them up on her 'to do' rack.

"Is that so hard to believe?"he asked standing on the piano bench.

Amy smirked at him then shrugged,"A dummy a many talents, eh?" She So what's up? Why the practice?"

"After I woke up, you weren't here and you didn't leave a note. So, I checked your caller ID and saw the last caller was Margo. I called her phone but it went to voice mail, then I called the front desk of The Party House and eventually got Margo's father who told me about positions available for the weekend. The musician positions pay the most if you factor in the hours needed with the pay rate."Slappy explained. "I mentioned you, so he hired us."

Amy looked at him with wide eyes,"Really? Without an audition?"

"I suppose he likes you."Slappy said and turned around.

Amy felt her skin crawl. "Ew."

"Alright."Slappy sat down on some books he placed on the piano bench and set his hands to the keys,"Lets get back to work." He looked awkward, but it worked.

Ray lifted the harmonica to his mouth, then pulled it away. "Oh, Amy. Thanks for the clothes you set out for us." he said and straightened the collar on his black dress shirt.

Amy smiled. "It was seriously nothing. They were just some clothes that were too small for dad that I took in a bit. I was hoping they'd fit well enough. How are the jeans?"she asked as she set out her tools on her sewing table.

"They're fine. Pretty good actually, since you never got my measurements the other night."Ray said then smiled at her sheepishly.

Amy's cheeks blossomed with blush and she laughed nervously, remembering that night with Ray. "Haha...yeah."

"Ray."Slappy said darkly.

A chill ran up Ray's spine. He looked back at him,"Sorry. Right..." Ray turned back to Amy,"At least you don't have to worry about making money now. Slappy and I can cover it."

"Actually, we do still need Amy's portion Ray."Slappy corrected.

Ray felt like an ass.

"That's fine, I like antique things, not principals. I'm fine with paying my own way."Amy said as she laid out the first dress on the cutting table.

"What is that?"Slappy asked when he spotted the dress.

Amy groaned,"I have to alter these for me and the other girls for tomorrow night." She looked in her note book for Lizzy's measurments.

Slappy crossed his arms. "You're going to be doing what in that dress exactly?"

Amy didn't notice the jealous inflection in Slappy's voice,"Serving hors d'oeuvres, canapés, you know, finger foods and other shit."

Slappy paused,"Nevermind. I was wrong. Ray and I can handle raising the funds. You stay here."he said quickly.

Amy's head shot up from her book,"What!? I already said I would! I can't go back on a_ commitment_!"

Ray looked at the dress, then back to Amy with concern,"I'm with Slappy. I don't think you should do it either."

"I can't NOT do it. These don't happen too often but when they do, I need to be there."Amy said as she deftly began removing stitches.

"Why?"Slappy demanded.

"Because no men are allowed in the room when those guys come to visit! Not even Margo's dad. The only thing between the girls and those creepy guys is me."she said looking at the dress hatefully.

Slappy scoffed,"What can you do to defend them?"

Amy shot a glare at him,"MOSTLY intimidate."she said then sighed. "They think it's '_cute_' that I '_act_' tough with them. They don't realize that I really will break their motherfucking fingers if they cross the line." She began measuring the dress pieces and marking them with chalk. "It's kind of a double edged sword though...I think some of them get off on it."

"How many men are usually there?"Ray asked in horror.

"Like, sixteen. Why?"Amy asked then started cutting.

She didn't see him, but Ray made an 'are you kidding me' gesture at her,"Amy, you can't defend yourself,let alone anybody else, from that many grown men if things go wrong!"

"How do you know?"she asked still cutting,"I've never tried before, but uncertainty wouldn't stop me anyway."

"No wonder your parents are loosing their minds."Slappy jeered.

"Hey!"Amy shouted at him.

"It's a sluts job, Amy!"he yelled at her.

"Whatever, I'm going and that's that!"she yelled back with her hands on her hips. "I have to get these dresses done, and then finish your suits, and then get a few hours of sleep before going in for hair and make-up! So, drop the goddamned subject!"

Slappy glared at her."Fine. Do as you like, Amy. I can see you are dead set on being molested, so have fun with your apparent rape fantasy, but don't expect me to come to your rescue _again_."

Amy gasped at the distasteful insult. "I can take care of myself, so that suits me just fine!"

"Fine."Slappy replied.

"Fine!"she fired back.

Slappy turned around and started playing the piano loudly. "You were flat last time, Ray! Start over from the first three bars!"he yelled angrily.

Ray gave Amy a quick apologetic glance, then hopped into the melody with his harmonica.

They really did sound good.

* * *

Amy and Slappy hadn't said a word to one another for the past few hours. Amy clipped the cropped suspenders to Lizzy's dress then hung it beside the other four on her 'finished' rack. Amy sighed, feeling very tired. She stood up for a good stretch then took her dress and went to the bathroom.

When Amy shut the door Slappy stopped playing. It was time for a break. He did the cut throat motion at Ray to tell him to give it a rest.

The two walked over and flopped down on the couch together. Slappy held a handwritten list in his hand. "There are two more songs on this list to practice. The problem is that they're modern, so I don't know quite how they are supposed to sound."

Ray held out a hand,"Let me see. Your idea of modern and mine are probably different."

Slappy passed the papers to him.

Ray sighed then sprawled out his side of the couch. Maybe he and slappy weren't all to different in age after all. "Nope. I don't know these either."

"What's wrong?"Amy asked coming out of the bathroom. She adjusted the black satin slack at her breast and measured it with her finger.

Ray sat up and turned around. "Ummmmm..."he couldn't seem to form words at the moment.

Amy was in a very short, black and white, satin and lace dress with layers of frills in the skirt. A black leather corset was wrapped around her waist that stopped just below her breasts, accentuating them cutely.

Slappy's mouth gaped open a moment.

_Who the fuck was she going to be serving in that outfit!?_

He almost started yelling at her again, but his pride over ruled his jealousy. He wasn't about to give her the satisfaction of seeing him loose his shit over something that hadn't even happened yet.

He quickly shut his mouth with a 'clack' before anyone saw him. He looked at the list in Ray's hands and not her."We aren't familiar with two songs. The others are mostly classics that Ray and I already know, but two of them are modern."

Amy walked up behind the couch and took the papers from Ray. "Oh yeah, I see."Amy recognized the songs then trotted across the room to get her phone from her backpack. She brought it back to them and leaned over the back of the couch,"This is what they sound like... " She pulled them up on YouTube as lyric videos. "We'll listen to Hozier first. Only because it's ironic."

She left her phone playing "Take Me To Church" on the back of the couch while she went to measure and pin parts of her dress.

"Sounds like you'll be the only one doing this one, Slappy."Ray said halfway through the song.

Slappy quickly shushed him.

Ray frowned then looked over at Amy since he didn't need to pay attention to the song.

_Black panties and stockings._

Amy was digging though a bottom drawer looking for a new roll of black elastic and coming up empty. "I know it's here."she said aloud.

Even with Slappy right beside him, Ray couldn't look away. It was too nice.

..until Slappy kicked him in the ribs. "GAH!"

Amy stood up at the loud pained sound and saw Ray keeled over on the couch like he had a stomachache. "You okay?"she asked.

Slappy glared at him. "He's fine. Aren't you, Ray?"

Ray gave a feeble thumbs up."_I'm fine..._"

Slappy got off the couch and took the phone to Amy. "Can you find sheet music on this?"

Amy took her phone,"Sure, but I'll need to go upstairs to use the printer."

Slappy slipped his hands in his pockets. "Okay. Let's go."

"We'll be right back Ray. Are you sure you're okay? Because you look like you you're suffering from diarrhea or something."she asked again.

"I just need..a little lie down..."he moaned then he flopped over on the couch.

"Okay..." Amy wasn't going to press the issue tonight. Besides, if he was really hurt, Slappy would know what to do. "Well, we'll be back in a little bit."she said then headed to the stairs.

Slappy followed behind her. He smirked at his view. Being short had it's advantages.

* * *

"Tada! Behold the power of the internet."Amy said as she handed over the print-offs to Slappy.

Slappy looked them over for any flaws before he decided that they would do. He glanced back to Amy. She looked like she was waiting for something. "This is all I need for now, slave."he said, assuming she needed to be dismissed.

Amy held up a hand in a 'stop' motion at him. "Okay, first of all,"Amy pointed at herself," NOT YOUR SLAVE. Secondly; Say thank you when somebody does something for you."

Slappy sighed and waved the papers back and forth."Thank you."

Amy smiled. "See. Easy."

Slappy rolled his eyes then side-stepped her out of Dennis's room.

"So, when did you learn how to play the piano?"Amy asked following him.

Slappy could have given her specific date, but didn't want to have to answer any additional questions. "A long time ago."he replied.

Geeze...he and John HAD to know each other. She bet they were real fun at parties.

As Slappy walked ahead of her, she realized that it still made her feel creepy to see a walking doll. As fluid as his movements had become since they first met, Slappy still looked unnatural if you watched him. The way he didn't actually breathe and how he could stand perfectly still...unnerving if you didn't know there was a soul beneath it all.

_Something alive._

_Something..lonely?_

_Lovely?_

_Loli?_

Yeeshh..she hoped not.

Amy stopped him before he could open the door to the basement.

Slappy shot a look at Amy, irritated. "What?"

Amy held her hand firmly against the door,"It occurs to me that I don't know anything about you."she stated.

"That was the plan."Slappy said as if it were obvious.

She smirked at him,"New plan. Tell me something I don't know about you."

Slappy groaned."Amy, let go of the door."

She put her free hand on her hip,"Not until you give me something. Pay the toll. I want to know something about you."

He could just yank the door open and fling her into the wall, but the bitching he would receive afterwards wouldn't be worth the momentary pleasure. He gave in,"Anything in particular?"

Amy shrugged,"I don't know...what's your favorite color?"

"Pink."he responded instantly and tried to open the door.

Amy pushed the door closed again roughly."It is not!"Amy laughed.

"How do you know?"he asked defiantly, quite upset she wasn't dropping the issue.

"Because knowing you, ever the narcissist, it's probably the color of your eyes."she said pointing a finger at them. "Or red, because...blood or something else intimidating."

Slappy huffed. she was a real pain in the ass...

She ran a hand through her wild locks,"Okay, how about...how old are you really?"

Slappy stared at her, calculating what he should tell her. What answer would mean the least amount of trouble for him and still satisfy her? It didn't matter, he just wanted to practice already. "I was created in 1880's. I don't remember the exact date."he said flippantly.

She looked at him questioningly,"Don't or can't?"

Slappy hadn't thought about it. "I don't really care."he said, quickly dismissing the thought and the mild alarm that came with it.

Amy let go of the door and Slappy slung it open and hurried down the stairs.

Geeze, he could be kinda bitchy.

Or crotchety.

_Damn, he was old..._

* * *

"_**Would you cut that out!?**_"Slappy yelled loudly slamming his hands down on the piano keys. "That banging is throwing off our tempo!"

"Don't shout at me!"Amy jumped up yelling back belligerently and brandished her mallet at him. "I have to get these rivets in this stupid corset! Then I'm fittin' yur'ass in suit! Then, I'm gonna-! I'ma gunna..." Amy wobbled on her feet like she was drunk.

Ray pocketed his harmonic and hurried over to her. "You're exhausted, Amy. You need to go to bed."

"I'm fline!"she shouted throwing her arms in the air, and her rubber mallet too.

"AH!"Ray barely dodged the mallet then grabbed Amy gently by her shoulders. "You've done enough, it's time to rest."

"_NoOoOoOoo.._."Amy moaned miserably.

Ray picked her up and she went boneless in his arms. "Honestly, I'm tired too. I think my lips are going to fall off if I have to play another note."

He looked at Slappy,"We all need a break. Let's just go to sleep. It's already eight in the morning."

"It isn't perfect yet!"Slappy hollered back seeming to have caught Amy's sleep deprived madness.

"Because we're all tired! _Eight in the morning_, Slappy! We've been practicing for TWELVE HOURS straight! I can't do it anymore!"Ray cried.

Slappy growled,"**Fine!** We sleep for an hour then we try again!"he slammed the piano shut and fell off the bench.

"Take me upstairs..I won't make it, Ray."Amy whined, Slappy's tumble unnoticed.

Ray would love to take her to bed, but he couldn't. "I can't Amy. The sun is out."

"Here."Slappy called their attention to the orange couch. He pulled off the pillows and cushions to reveal a fold-out bed. It took a few good pulls before it finally unfolded. The mattress didn't look very comfortable and was covered in plastic.

Ray kicked a blanket Amy had brought down to him earlier over to Slappy.

Slappy caught it then laid it over the mattress. He tossed the pillows back on, then pulled the other blanket off the back of the couch to cover them up with. By the end of it he was panting. He hated to admit it, but he was tired too.

"Here we go.."Ray said as he lay Amy, who already looked asleep, down on her back in the middle of the fold-out before climbing in beside her. He was too tired to give a shit if it pissed Slappy off or not. He pulled the blanket up at the same time as Slappy on the other side of Amy. "I thought you weren't tired?"Ray said without hiding his annoyance. He had wanted Amy to himself again.

Slappy's eye twitched,"I didn't say that. Besides, I have to keep an eye on you, so you won't try to either eat her or fuck her."

Ray raised his head off his pillow,"I wouldn't do that! I'm too tired!"he said in a raised voice at Slappy.

Slappy pulled the thick quilt up over his shoulder and grimaced at Ray. Even if he didn't need it, it was comforting to be covered by a blanket whenever he rested. "Whatever, your demon is a lust demon. Your kind always has energy tucked away for sex."Slappy told him with no small amount of disdain.

"What!? I'm not-"Ray said as the faintest amount of blush colored his cheeks. For him that was as flush as he could get. "How do you know?"Ray snapped at him feeling embarrassed. He wrapped and arm around Amy's waist and pulled her closer to him. "Well what kind are you then?"he asked perturbed.

Slappy put Amy's other arm around himself then draped his arm across her ribs, pulling her closer to him. "You'll know it when you see it, IF I ever fight you for real."

Ray was confused. "Wait..what? What was all that the other night then?"he asked as he inched closer to Amy's warm body.

Slappy smirked and narrowed his eyes at Ray,"A love tap and foreplay."

Ray frowned,"Eww, gross."

Slappy frowned tiredly too,"I could have that worded that better."

Ray yawned then smiled against the back of Amy's hand that was wedged between them. "Who's the perv now?"

Slappy rested his forehead against Amy's shoulder and closed his eyes. "Still you. Go to sleep, Ray."

Ray murmured something not even he understood back before falling asleep.

A few minutes later when they were asleep, Amy petted Ray's cheek and pulled Slappy closer to her.

She smiled happily, then finally drifted off to sleep herself.


	18. Chapter 18

Lizzy slipped out of bed, careful not to wake Margo. She slinked out of the bedroom to the bathroom. She checked her phone for any messages or updates on her blog.

Lizzy gasped.

"Four hundred plus!?"she shouted in a quiet, strained whisper. A cold feeling of dread washed over her as she opened her messages.

**"HELP"**

**"SAVE US,PLEASE"**

**"HE'S GONE MAD"**

**"EVERYONE IS GONE"**

**"HORROR LAND UNDER ATTACK"**

**"GREEN EYES ALWAYS WATCHING"**

These were only a few headers to the hundreds of messages she had received from various users. "What the hell is happening..?"she asked aloud.

These were all from Horrorland! She quickly scanned through the messages for a certain user,"Monster X, where are you...?"

She found him. "**Lizzy, I need a favor..**"was the heading. She quickly opened it and read;

_**"Lizzy, I hope this finds you safe and sound. **__**Something horrible is happening here. **_

_**I know it's a sore subject, but do you remember Slappy? He had a brother. Everyone thought he was dead, but a month ago he returned. Slappy took him in and gave him dominion in the park. He was actually really great at first. The complete opposite of Slappy. Everybody liked him. **_

_**I guess that's why nobody helped Slappy when his brother overthrew him and stole all his magic.**_

_**We were better off with Slappy.**_

_**Something happened when he absorbed all that power. He suddenly became violent and paranoid. He kept saying that someone kept whispering to him, but nobody was. Nobody would dare. He started imprisoning horrors, then executing them in Werewolf Village. Everyone began to flee the park after that, but then the shoe really fell.**_

_**He started turning everyone into living puppets.**_

_**Perfect slaves.  
**_

_**He kept the living puppets hidden for a while, but now they roam HorrorLand freely. They kill anything living they come across. Everything except for a girl and boy. **_

_**Slappy kidnapped them before any of this happened. His brother kept them, but I found out it was at a terrible cost. The elder brother traded eight years of his life and his soul in exchange for the life and safety of his younger sister. He looks like a twenty year old now. He does all the dirty work of turning anybody he comes across. **_

_**I suppose turning is better than being ripped apart limb by limb...**_

_**There's also one other. A young woman. She looks to be fifteen or sixteen. Long blonde hair,blue eyes, and fair skin. I didn't catch her name. I try not to get that close. He keeps her on a leash like some kind of twisted pet. I think he keeps her for..I don't want to think about it. **_

_**I think there was something horrible inside of Slappy and whatever it is, ti's in his brother now. It's the most evil thing I have ever seen, Lizzy.**_

_**I don't think he's going after the human world until he has conquered all the monsters first, but I'm afraid that won't be long at the rate he's going. I'm still here in HorrorLand.  
**_

_**Lizzy, I need a favor. You won't want to do it, but...please...find Slappy. He has to take this away from his brother. Seems Slappy could contain it, but Wally can't. His soul isn't strong enough to fight whatever madness has consumed him.**_

_**Wally was not always like this. I just KNOW he wasn't. He was my friend.**_

_**Please, Lizzy. You and Slappy are our ONLY hope.**_

_**If I don't respond to your e-mails within 24 hours, assume I have died. Then, please look for Johnathan Chiller. He can help you if I'm not around.**_

_**I'm hold up with a bunch of Vamps and Wolves at the moment. I'm not the religious type, but but say a prayer to any benevolent god you know of for me. For all of us."**_

_**-Monster X**_

Lizzy sat on the cold bathroom tile. She felt sick. "Be okay, Ned..."she whispered. Lizzy hit the reply button.

_**"Monster-X,**_

_**I got your message and you're right. It's a sore subject...but not so much that I could ever turn my back on you.**_

_**STAY. SAFE.**_

_**I'll find Slappy and MAKE HIM come back. I promise I'll do everything in my power to save you.**_

_**At least you.**_

_**STAY. ALIVE.**_

_**I'll never forgive you if you die.**_

_**If you get any other information, please relay it to me if you can. Don't do anything reckless.**_

_**I'll hear from you soon. I had better.**_

_**-Lizzy**_

Lizzy hit the send button and made a mental note of the time.

\- 8:36am -

Ned had become her best friend. Ever since Panic Park incident they had kept in touch. It would kill her if something happened to him.

"Lizzy?"Margo asked from the doorway. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and wrapped her rose colored, thin,long house coat around her. "Is everything okay?"

"I just got some bad news."she said quietly.

Margo tilted her head then walked into the bathroom and sat down beside Lizzy on the floor. "Do you want to talk about it?"she asked sweetly and full of concern.

"It's a long story."Lizzy said then held her head in her hands. "A _really long_ story."

"I've got time."Margo said with a sympathetic smile.

Maybe it was time to tell somebody? Would Margo even believe her?

"You'd think I was crazy if I told you. I can't."Lizzy said into her hands.

"I'll believe you."Margo reassured her then hugged Lizzy, "No matter what. I don't care if it sounds crazy. I really like you, I don't believe you'd lie." Margo confessed, blushing against her new friends messy black hair."Even if it were actually crazy, if it was real to you, it would be real to me too. If that makes any sense?" She asked the last part, but she had meant every word.

"Margo...that's crazy. You just met me." Lizzy looked up at Margo, her blue eyes meeting her nearly aqua ones. "...but, I like you, too."

Words couldn't express the warmth Lizzy felt when Margo smiled at her in that moment. _She looked so happy._ That image would stay with Lizzy forever.

"I'm so glad!"Margo said and pounced on Lizzy, knocking them over onto the bathroom floor.

"Ah! Careful!"Lizzy yelped then laughed.

"Oops!"Margo chirped then stood up. She took Lizzy's hand and helped her up. "How about I order breakfast from the main house and you can tell me everything?"

Lizzy liked that idea.

* * *

"Hold for a moment, please."Dennis said as he pressed the hold button on his polycom. He groaned and leaned back in his swivel chair. "_I can't help you with this issue. It's a problem with your network._'" he repeated for the eighth time in ten minutes, but this time to himself. "Is that SO hard to understand?"he complained.

Just then the doorbell rang. Startled, Dennis sat up straight in his chair and listened for a second ring.

There wasn't one. He sighed in relief and hopped out of his chair. He trotted to the front door and peeked out in time to see the UPS guy drive off.

The last thing he wanted was to accidentally answer it to a person. That would be really awkward without his disguise on.

He opened the door to find a medium sized box with a letter taped to the top on the doorstep. He quickly brought it inside and peeled the letter off.

It looked official.

"Ms. Amy Kramer &amp; Company..?"he read aloud. He nudged the door closed with his foot, then set the letter back on the box and locked the door. "Amy?"he called down the hall.

Who was he kidding?

Dennis opened the door to the basement,"Amy?"he called into the darkness. "Amy, are you down there?"

There was no response at first, then he heard foot steps. Slow, sharp steps.

"Amy...?"he repeated weakly.

Dennis didn't have time to react when the steps came clattering inhumanly fast up the stairs. He choked back a scream when Slappy was not half a foot in front of him instantly. He was too stunned to speak...those green eyes were piercing as ever.

"What?"Slappy growled.

Dennis forced his fear away and replaced it with his second-most feeling for Slappy.

_Strong dislike._

He furrowed his brow and glanced behind Slappy down the stairs."Is..is Amy down there?"

"She's sleeping."he said with a concentrated glare at Dennis.

There's something about talking to someone, whom you busted their head open, that makes you anxious."S-she has mail. Could you send her up?"he stammered, trying not to grip the box too tightly.

"It's for me."Slappy said then grabbed the box.

"No it isn't! It's addressed to Amy!"Dennis yelled and pulled the box back.

The next thing Dennis knew he was tumbling down the stairs and landed in a heap on the basement floor.

His eyes widened in fear when, from the top of the stairs, Slappy shut the door and the basement was engulfed in black.

"Amy!?"Dennis called out to her.

"Calling on a little girl to fight your fight?"Slappy jeered.

"What? Who's fighting?"Amy asked groggily.

"Slappy threw me down the stairs!"Dennis yelled into the dark. He couldn't see anything.

"Blind are we?"Slappy laughed. He took intentionally loud steps to incite panic in his previous rival."I guess you're just a trapped soul after all.."his words were laced with a little disappointment.

"Amy!"Dennis cried out, scrambling in the dark.

"Hold on Dennis!" Amy rolled out of bed and hit the ground with a thud. "OW! Goddammit Slappy! Stop scarring him!"

"He started it."Slappy grumbled.

The fold-out bed creaked as Ray helped Amy to her feet. "It's okay Amy. I'll get Dennis." He helped a grateful looking Amy sit back down on the bed then approached the terrified doll on the floor. "Hey, I'm right here." Ray crouched down directly in front of him."I don't think we've met yet, I'm Ray."he said as kindly as he could.

"H-hi..."Dennis said reluctantly.

"Tch. Enough."Slappy said scowling. He snapped his fingers and little green flames flickered to life atop every candle, burnt out or otherwise, set around the basement. The room was bathed in a crisp green light. "Get up on your own, stupid doll."

Being able to see made Dennis feel a little better.

He could see Ray now.

He was friendly looking young man.

_The kind of guy Sara would find handsome._

Dennis couldn't help but suddenly like him a little less.

Dennis rose to his feet and dusted himself off. "Thank you, Ray."

Ray smiled and stood up. "No problem."

"Hey!"Dennis yelled when he heard a loud ripping sound. Just as he thought, Slappy was sitting on the stairs opening Amy's package."That was addressed to Amy! Don't just open it!"

"What?" Amy hopped up and looked at Slappy. "What's in it?"she said looking excited. She actually didn't care if Slappy opened her mail.

Slappy gave Dennis a smug look, then took a large manilla envelope out as well as a bottle. He tossed the bottle to Ray who caught it.

Ray looked at the bottle,"SUN RX?"he read aloud. He was about to open it then he yelled and dropped it. He backed away from the bottle and stared at his hands in horror.

Amy stepped over to Ray. He looked mortified."Ray? What's wrong? Wrong skin tone?"

"Shit."Slappy cursed under his breath. Of course Dawes' scent was all over the box.

Ray looked at Slappy with the saddest, most hurt look the demon had ever seen. "Why...why would..?"Ray whimpered.

Slappy was stunned speechless...he felt guilty. He forgot that he had failed to tell Ray about his meeting with Dawes.

Amy looked to Slappy then back to Ray. With his hands still held out away from him, she hugged him. "Hey, it's okay."she asked and gently rubbed his back."We'll get you a different one, okay?"

Clueless Amy. He sighed and buried his face in Amy's hair. He pulled her closer with his forearms, careful not to touch her with his contaminated hands. "I need to wash my hands..."he said barely above a whisper.

"Okay.." She had no idea what this was about. Why weren't they telling her anything?

She helped him to the bathroom then closed the door behind them.

When the two were inside, Slappy descended the stairs and picked up the bottle aggressively.

He looked at Dennis. "Do you have any vinegar?"

"Umm..yeah. I'll..I'll show you where it is."he said then hurried up the stairs, thoroughly confused by the scene.

Slappy followed him, picking up the box on the way up. He would need to remember to pour some on the stairs when he was done washing the scent from everything else.


	19. Chapter 19

Dennis put away the half empty gallon of vinegar back in the cabinet just as Slappy came up from the basement.

He held a damp filthy rag in hand after wiping down the basement steps. Slappy dumped it in the garbage can before going to the sink to wash his hands. He groaned in annoyance at the sink. It was too damn high to get to.

Dennis gently kicked his own step stool across the floor to Slappy. "That should help."he said in a friendlier voice than he intended for Slappy.

Slappy glanced at him and mumbled a 'thank you'.

"It's not a problem." Dennis sighed as he watched Slappy wash. "So, what was the deal with all that? I don't understand all this supernatural stuff."

Slappy snorted when he laughed."That sounds absurd coming from a living dummy..but it's not all that surprising. You aren't human, but you spend all your time with them. I can understand how you'd disassociate yourself from your true identity." He shut off the water and shook his hands dry.

Dennis crossed his arms and his posture became stiff. "How I live is my business."

"Seeing as how you aren't a demon, I'd bet my left eye that you're just a human soul trapped in a doll." Slappy hopped to the floor. He motioned for Dennis to have his turn washing. "Perhaps 'trapped' isn't the word, since you seem fairly content in your delusions."

"I'm not _deluded_."Dennis walked past Slappy to the sink. "I know what I am." He began lathering up to his elbows, like a doctor.

"Then, why do you keep trying to fit in when you know you never will? You're a dummy shaped peg trying to fit into a human shaped hole. You may have a human soul, but _both of us know_ what inside doesn't matter to humans. You will never measure up."

Dennis fucking hated Slappy, but he hated that Slappy was right even more. "Yo know what? Never mind. Forget I asked. I'll just stay in my world and you just stay in yours."

Slappy stare intensely at Dennis back. "Ignoring it will only make things worse for you...not that I care about your delicate feelings."

Dennis glowered at the sink drain for a moment then reached to his left and tore a few paper towels off the roll and dried his hands and forearms. "Butt out, then."

"It's only a little advice from one monster to another, Dennis."

Dennis slammed the water spout down, cutting off the flow of water. "_I am not a monster_!" he yelled with a sudden outburst of emotion. He turned and glared at Slappy, livid.

Slappy stood unmoved, other than his eyes had widened a bit.

The joining on the water faucet dripped in rhythmic drops as they stared at one another wordlessly.

Slappy broke eye contact with Dennis, then made a noise like he was clearing his throat. "Well, thank you for the help, Dennis. I have to go apologize to Ray."he said sounding somber.

Dennis expression turned somber. "You're welcome."

Slappy hated how much pity he felt for that idiot. It made_ him_ feel like an idiot. Slappy turned and walked to the basement, shaking his head.

After the door to the basement closed, Dennis felt very alone.

He lingered in his spot for a few quit moments, then left his step stool and threw the wet paper towels away.

He had intended to walk back to his room, but ended up in Sara's room instead.

The hand painted walls and paint splattered floors made him smile. Not particularly from the color composition, but because it was the only disorder that Sara allowed herself.

She was such a perfectionist. It made her nothing less than excellent at everything she did, but it also consumed her. The latter part of herself she only ever revealed to him. He would spend all his time with Sara if he could. She needed him so much. She was under so much stress, but she never showed it. She repressed everything...it was the most worrisome thing about her.

He looked at her pristine duvet and straightened out a rouge crease in the fabric. The memory of _the_ major turning point in his short life came to mind as her smoothed his hand over the staunch white covering.

It was late in the afternoon about two years ago and he had just started his telecommuting job. That day he was supposed to meet Amy at The Party House for a performance, but he had stayed behind to finish setting up his office while Amy went ahead of him.

If he hadn't gone to Sara's room to ask her for tape...

Dennis looked hard at the bed, thinking of the flooring beneath it.

He had found Sara laying in the middle of the floor in a white dress. He thought it odd, but from what he understood, artists were weird. Sara must not have realized anyone was home. He felt bad for walking in on what was supposed to be a private moment and he almost didn't disturb her, but...then he saw all the red paint.

Then he realized it wasn't red paint.

He had been in a frenzy trying to stop the bleeding. He still wasn't completely aware of how the world worked back then, otherwise he would have just call a paramedic. Thankfully, Mr. Kramer happened to have an old medical book in his library.

If it hadn't been for that book, he wouldn't have known what to do and Sara would have died. It was the single most terrifying moment he could remember.

It took hours to clean up all the blood. They ended up rearranging Sara's room to cover up the staining on the birch wood flooring.

He had completely missed his performance with Amy that night.  
He hadn't meant to stand her up.  
When Amy came home she was furious with him. He wanted to explain himself, but Sara had made him swear to never tell anyone about what happened...so he lied.  
He had no choice but to let Amy believe he didn't care.

After that, he and Amy drifted apart.

Just thinking about how he slowly lost what he had with Amy made his hollow chest ache.

Dennis hugged his arms and looked around the cold room.

Sara needed him more than Amy had. Dennis kept watch over Sara. He promised himself that he would always be there for her.

He had never intended to be anything but a friend and confidant to Sara... but after he got to know her, he couldn't help himself.

Every chance he got, he would spend in this room with her. He would spend every dime he had left over from school and rent on her.

_He would do anything for Sara._

He loved her with every ounce of himself, so much that it hurt.

Dennis' cell phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and his eyes went wide. "Oh no! I left them on hold this whole time!"he shouted then bolted back to his room.

* * *

"I've had enough of this!"Amy yelled at the two guys not speaking to one another on the orange couch. "I want you to tell me everything. NOW."

She was sick of being the only one who had no idea what was going on.

Ray sat further away from Slappy,"It's personal , Amy.."

Amy looked hurt,"You can tell Slappy, but not me?"

Ray gazed at her apologetically. "It's not like that."

"Yes it is! You think I won't understand, don't you?" She sighed and crossed her arms defensively." Even if I don't understand, I want to be on the same page as the both of you." She bowed her head,"I feel...left out. Like I don't matter as much. Like, I'm a less important part of our team."

"Team?"Slappy said in a mocking tone.

Amy looked at him,"Well, yeah. We're Team Slappy,"she said to him doe-eyed,"...or Team Kick-Ass. I haven't decided." Amy smiled and shrugged.

"Team Slappy, eh?"he recited, tasting the moniker on his tongue. It did have a ring to it.. "Amy, it's for your own good that we don't tell you things."Slappy tried to explain.

"Oh, what!? You think that I should be left in the dark because knowing would only upset me or something?"Amy yelled,"Well, guess the fuck what? I don't scare off easy! In fact, I just might be able to adapt better if you'd tell me what I'm facing to begin with!"  
Amy dropped her arms to her sides,loosely balled her fists, and squared her shoulders,"What I'm trying to say is, that I'm in this for the long haul guys! I made a promise to both of you and I don't make promises lightly. Whatever happens, I am going to be there. So, either you can tell me now and let me have time to prepare for what's ahead, OR, you can keep your little secrets and let me run a higher risk of getting myself hurt. Your choice."

Slappy crossed his legs. "Sit down, Amy."

"NO! I don't wanna'!"Any pouted.

Slappy sighed,"The fact is that you are human."

"So what!?"Amy put her hands on her hips. "Just because I'm squishier than you doesn't mean crap! I can take a dick!" she yelled.

An awkward silence fell over them.

Slappy snickered.

Even in the green lighting, Amy's cheeks had turned beet red."It's a figure of speech!"she squeaked.

Ray stood up and put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry I made you feel that way, Amy. I'll tell you what I told Slappy if it will make you feel better."

Amy roughly knocked Ray's hands off her shoulders. "I don't want you to tell me because I'm throwing a fit! I want you to tell me because you feel like you can confide in me."Amy told him honestly. "I'm sorry if I haven't earned that distinction yet" Amy looked to Slappy. "All I want is to be an equal."

He had always thought she was as stupid as all the other humans. She was, but not in the same way. If she wanted to test her limits, who was he to stop her? "Are you sure you can handle that?"he asked.

She'd like to 'yes' but that would be a lie. She had no idea exactly what it was what she asking for. Would she be able to dodge projectile cars or soldier on when it counted? "No. I want it anyway."Amy said with conviction.

Slappy smirked. "Good answer." He motioned to the seat beside him. "I'll get you up to speed in a minute, but I need to say something to Ray first." Slappy looked at Ray, who looked back at him expectantly. "Dawes approached me after I went into the school. He, by proxy, owns the car. I asked him for a favor and he gave it to me. I'm sorry. I should have told you about him sooner."

Ray hugged his arms and looked away. "What was he doing there..?"

"He owns the place. I would guess that he had some security measures that let him know if there are intruders." Slappy reasoned, but he knew that wasn't why. He sighed. "But, the most likely reason it's because he knows you were resurrected. He said his gaze never leaves you for long."

Ray expression turned to one of panic,"He's_ watching_ me..?"

There was no reason to sugar coat it. "Yes. You'll have to face him again, Ray. Could be today, could be tomorrow, could be years from now. I don't know when, but it's for certain you will cross paths again."

"I hate feeling this way..."he whimpered. He'd have to be in the same space as that man again. Call it destiny, fate, or a curse, his days were numbered. The thought made him want to vomit.

Amy spoke up,"This Dawes guy hurt Ray, didn't he? I just want to be clear on that."

Ray glanced at her, then back at the floor. He had just said he would tell her everything, but all he could stomach was the simplest reason. "He's the one that turned me."

Amy looked at Slappy,"We don't need anything from that jerk-ass. We can get a car another way."

Slappy stared back at her annoyed. "Amy, I can't just send it back."

"Hell yeah you can. I don't want that thing if it upsets Ray."Amy swiped her hand in the air to accentuate her feeling.

Ray looked at her mournfully,"But you loved that car."

Amy put her hands over his on his arms. "I love YOU. Action Bastard is just a car."

Ray was stunned."You love me?"

"Uh, yeah."she said as if it should have been obvious by now,"I love you a lot. I love Slappy's grouchy-ass, too.",she said and motioned a thumb in his direction. Slappy suddenly looked as surprised as Ray did. "You're both dear to me now, ya know..?"

Slappy coughed and looked away,"As _sweet_ as the sentiment is, we still need a car and.." Slappy gave pause to the name before he said it," .._.Action Bastard._..is available right now." He looked to Ray, "Dawes gave it to me as a loan. The car has nothing to do with you ,Ray."

Ray's expression turned cold and angry, "That's bull. He wouldn't have agreed if I weren't involved. He's trying to worm his way back into my good graces."

Slappy felt a little insulted."You seem to fail to understand my position in the monster world. If he helps me now, when I get back in power I'll owe him a favor. Dawes is a business man above all else."he reassured Ray.

"That doesn't mean it's any less distressing, Slappy."Amy interjected. "We'll be spending a lot of time in that thing and I'm not about to torture Ray."

Ray gazed at Amy. She was a true friend, but Slappy had a point, right now wasn't the time to be sentimental. "It's okay, Amy." Ray sighed. "Accept the car. I won't let it bother me."

Slappy smiled at him. "Good man." He hopped off the couch and retrieved the manilla envelope from on top of the television. "Amy, I need for you to have these papers notarized and sent out today." He held out the papers. "I've already signed my parts."

"Ummm..."Amy had some questions about that.

"Ray, you and I need to practice for tonight."Slappy said and gestured to the piano.

"Wait!" Amy curtly cupped her hand to Ray's cheek and looked in his blue eyes for any doubts,"Are you sure you're okay with this..?"

He smiled at her and used her own words,"I promise."

Amy looked like she was about to cry before she stood on her tip-toes and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Okay, but let me know if you change your mind. It's just a car."

He hugged her back,"I can't separate you two. What about all those car babies you were going to have with it?"he joked.

Amy laughed then released the affectionate hug."I guess it would suck to lose my baby-daddy."

Slappy tapped his foot,"Would you two cut it out? We have work to do and Amy needs to get going."

"But it's already three in the afternoon and I still have projects to finish! What the heck is a notary anyway?"Amy complained.

"You wanted equal treatment, didn't you?"Slappy snapped at her," Well, pull your own weight. Ray and I can't do it, only you can. Consider it your first mission." He smirked at her as she took the envelope,"Lets see how adaptive you can be."

"Goddammit." Amy grumbled then clomped up the stairs to ask Dennis if he knew what a notary was.


	20. Chapter 20

It was seven and dark outside.

Amy had been working since five and hadn't had a break yet. She hadn't had anything to eat all day except for some skittles she had pilfered from a candy dispenser at the UPS store with Dennis.

Amy adjusted the collar of her dress shirt. "For the love of god! Where are they?" She had been waiting for Ray and Slappy to arrive so she could fit them in their suits before she went to the kitchens for some food.

"Amy?" A middle aged looking man in a casual tuxedo with sandy brown hair and blue eyes said as he approached her. He looked anxious,"I'm running behind. Are your friends going to be here soon?"

Amy set down her tray on a nearby table still cluttered with pink plates and other party debris. "Yeah, they'll here real soon! Why what's up,Mr. Margo's dad?"she asked as she dusted sprinkles off her waitress uniform.

"They are good aren't they..?"he asked looking hopeful and regretful.

Amy put a hand on her hip and smirked at him. "They are _very good_, I promise. Don't worry about it, sir. They will be absolutely here!" Amy reassured him and started clearing the table.

_They had better show up or she was going to tear both of them a new asshole!_

"Okay..."he said reluctantly. "Oh, Amy, what are your friend's full names?" Margo's dad leaned in and whispered,"I need them for my personal books."

She guessed rich bastards were all actually cheap bastards.

Amy thought for a moment. She knew Ray's last name was Thurston, but had no idea if Slappy had one. She'd have to make something up...

_Amy giggled..._

* * *

"Is it cold out there?"an older staff member asked the short fella who was all bundled up as walked through the band entrance.

"Ha, yeah. It's going to be a cold one.."Ray responded and pushed his sunglasses further up his nose.

The Party House was roaring with excitement as it seemed every room in the sprawling estate was occupied. For Ray, it was nearly overwhelming after spending so much time in the company of the dead or in solitude. Everything around him surged with life and sound. Everything moved and the rush of people coming and going that made the house feel like he was in the blood stream of a living creature. He had a hard time following Slappy through the thoroughfare because everything was a distraction.

"HEY!"Amy shouted down the hall from them. She was wearing a black pencil skirt, white dress shirt, and a black vest. Her hair was pulled back, but still sprung out in wild waves from it's collection in a hair claw. She jumped up and down waving at them. "This way guys!"

Ray smiled and hurried along with Slappy against the torrent of staff until they reached her. "Hey, Amy. Are we late?"he asked.

Amy grabbed both of them by their sleeves and pulled them down the chaotic corridor."Oh my god, I'm so glad you made it. You were starting to scare me."she said sounding more relieved than angry."You guys are late for being early, I'll put it that way."

Slappy pulled his scarf down from his mouth so she could hear him,"Dennis dressed me."he said more like an accusation to her than a reason for being technically late.

"You look.."Amy glanced down at him. He looked like a wooly tick wearing sunglasses. "..warm."

Slappy grumbled under his breath.

Amy took a moment and looked Ray over,"You doing okay in this lighting? It's kinda bright by your standards isn't it?"

"I have on some medicated, voodoo sunscreen from earlier."Ray said as Amy pressed them to the wall as a janitorial cart came rushing past.

"Well, that's nice."she said and ushered them a little further then turn right. There was a short staircase and some double doors. She kicked them open with her black wedge shoes,"Hey Bobby! What you got to eat tonight!?"she shouted as the entered the kitchen.

"Amy!" a man that looked to be seven feet tall with an indiscernible accent said to her merrily. He held out his long arms as a welcoming gesture to her. He had a knife in one hand and a spatula in the other."Don't your parents ever feed you at home?"he asked jovially as they approached him.

"Never, thank god!"she replied. Amy let go of Slappy and Ray then gave Bobby a big brief hug. She motioned to Ray and Slappy. "Bobby, these are my friends. The short one is called Slappy and the pretty one is Ray."

Ray ran a hand through his hair and grinned tentatively at the tall dark haired man with thick bone structure. "Nice to meet you."he said and held out a hand.

Bobby threw the knife he was holding into a chopping block to his left with deadly force and accuracy. "It is nice to meet you too!"he said and pulled him into a crushing one armed hug, ignoring the invitation to a hand shake.

Ray grunted as the wind was squeezed from him for three full seconds before Amy's behemoth friend released him and knelt down to shake Slappy's hand. Ray wondered why Slappy got special treatment.

"Bobby taught me everything I know about cooking."she told them as she picked up a plate from the top of stainless steel shelf and began picking and choosing from the various foods available. "If it wasn't for him I'd still be eating my family's terrible cooking."she said as she grabbed a scoop of cheese cubes from a tray then a big bunch of grapes from a bowl.  
"I swear to GOD, the only thing my family can make is _asshole-casserole_..."she said then popped a big grape in her mouth, shaking her head.

Bobby laughed then retrieved his knife."You need to watch your mouth young lady. You spend too much time with the musicians!" He pointed the knife at Ray and Slappy. "They are a bad influence! Stay away from them!"

Amy snickered with a mouth full of ham from a hunk she snatched off a rolling cart,"Bobby, they're musicians."she said muffled and pointed at the two.

Bobby looked back at them,"Like I said, great and diverse people! I love musicians!"

Amy laughed then returned to Bobby's side. She motioned and he bent down for her. Amy gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek,"We gotta go, Bob. Thanks for the food. You're a lifesaver."

"Of course. What is life without good food?"he said then returned to work smiling.

Amy went back out the way they came in, bumping the doors open with her rear this time. "Bye Bobby!"she yelled before the doors closed behind them.

"Well, he was..robust."Ray said and rubbed his shoulder.

"Did we waste time going in there just so you could get dinner?"Slappy asked perturbed.

"Yes. I need food to survive and you guys have NO IDEA how to find your way through the maze of madness that is the service corridors. So, too bad."she said with a skip in her step as she lead them to the dressing rooms.

By time they came to a stop she had wolfed down her food. She set the plate with some others on a table in between the two dressing rooms. "Wait here a second."she said and trotted into the ladies room.

Slappy looked around for a clock. When he didn't spy one he stopped a man walking by,"Do you have the time?"

He looked at his wrist watch,"It's fifteen till eight."he said looking frazzled.

Amy came back out of the dressing room with her back pack and some clothing covers. "Oh hey!"she exclaimed when she saw Margo's dad."Great timing! These are my friends."she said to him, then motioned to Ray,"This is Ray Thurston." Then she motioned to Slappy,"And this is 'Slappy' Morningwood. You are going to love them."she said grinning.

Slappy turned his head slowly and glared up at Amy from behind his scarf and shades.

Ray was biting his tongue to keep from laughing.

Margo's dad looked at them with an unreadable expression. It was like he was trying to smile and have a stroke at the same time. "That's great! Umm..did you forget your suits?" he asked looking them over.

"I've got them right here, sir!"Amy patted the clothing cover," They will be ready in ten minutes!"

He looked at her with a worried,stressed face,"Okay."he said through a closed teeth smile before hurrying on his way.

Amy looked at them wide eyed when Margo's father was gone,"OH MY GOD. WE GOTTA HURRY." She dragged them into the dimly lit men's dressing room. "Strip down to the skivvys!"she commanded as she pushed them to the changing stalls then quickly started setting up her tools from her back pack.

Slappy was fed-up with Amy bossing him around, but he didn't have time to argue with her. They had to be on stage in fifteen minutes. "Hurry up Amy."he said as he dropped his trousers behind the red velvet curtain.

"I am!"she barked back as she plugged in her small portable sewing machine, then brought them their suits. She popped into Ray's stall first,"Hi!"she chirped.

Ray looked at her wide eyed. No one ever gave him any undergarments, so he was currently butt naked except for a pair of black socks.

Amy quickly looked up at the ceiling then held the black suit out to him."Sorry!"

"Thanks...knock first next time?"he said with a shy smirk then took the clothes from her. He actually didn't care if she saw him naked.

Amy turned to leave, still looking up, but couldn't help herself and peered over her shoulder as she stepped out. Amy smiled a mile wide. Ray had an amazing ass.

Next she popped over to Slappy who snatched the suit away from her before she could push the curtain to the side. "Get out."he demanded.

"Well, tell me how they fit! I can do temporary adjustments in the blink of an eye!"Amy boasted.

After a few minutes they both came out of the stalls fully dressed, except for shoes and ties.

_She wasn't going to have to do a damn thing._

The one button, black suit jacket and matching black slacks she had made for Ray contoured his young form well. The English cut looked good on him. His dress shirt was the same black one from before but it was slightly lighter shade than his jacket and pants. It still looked nice since she had found time to iron it and press the classic collar right before she left the house earlier. Amy doubted anything could look bad on him really, but the contrast of his gold hair and porcelain skin against the black fabric added at least nine levels of sexy to him. It also brought out his eyes spectacularly.

"Wow.."she breathed after few moments of revery.

Then her gaze drifted to Slappy.

_He was right. _

_Nothing compared to him in a suit._

He wore her creation like a dream. She had gone for a European cut for Slappy's stone grey jacket and pants. It gave him an authoritative shape that screamed dominance and conformed beautifully to his narrow waist and hips. She had made him a quartz grey double breasted waist coat that looked ridiculously good on him when he unbuttoned the jacket for her to get a look at the fit. With a pair of Dennis' black leather gloves she had altered to fit Slappy's longer,thinner digits he kinda looked like a professional assassin.

Amy bit her bottom lip and she looked away, suddenly feeling bashful. "I wish I had better shoes for you guys to wear.."

"This is fine."Slappy said as he adjusted the white cotton cuff of his dress shirt.

Amy fetched Slappy a pair of Dennis' ordinary black dress shoes and a new rich-red bow tie ribbon.

He glanced up at Amy as she approached him. "Thank you."

Amy smiled. She thought back to when she found him on her door step and how pitiful he had looked then. It was hard to believe that had only been a week since then. There was something about seeing him back together again that made her feel like she had accomplished something great. "Back in your element, huh?"

He took the ribbon from her,"Almost."

Amy set the shoes in front of him then got Ray's things.

She brought ray a pair black dress shoes she had borrowed from one of her waiter friends and a black satin tie. "Do you know how to put one of these on?"she asked, tipping the tie at him.

"Would you think less of me if I said 'no'?"he asked with a crooked smile.

"Maybe."she said as she looped it over his head and pulled him closer. He smiled at her while she tied it for him.

"You guys look amazing, if I must say so myself." Amy's number one commission from Margo's dad was repairing suits and uniforms.

It still surprised her that it hadn't taken long to make them. She was glad she had worked on them on Wednesday after she had gotten back home from school.  
Slappy's had taken the longest because of it's size and the addition of the vest. Ray's suit was a simpler design that she knew well.

"It sucks that we have to cover up Slappy's face and head. It really robs the image."she commented as she tightened Ray's tie knot.

Slappy thought it over a moment. "I'd hate to do that.."he said then covered his face with his hands starting at his chin. He moved his hands like he was washing his face. His hard wooden features softened and the hard lines of his clacking jaw disappeared. It was replaced with a whole jawline. The same happened for the rest of his face until he was passing his gloved fingers through dark chestnut strands of hair. He tried out his jaw, now much more mobile, but felt terribly awkward. It was the lips that were the worst trouble. "It's only a temporary illusion. I should last the night like this."he said as if it were no big deal and went back in the dressing stall to collect his things.

Amy couldn't believe it. He looked exactly the same as before, those intense ultramarine eyes and still short... but human.

Like a very petite man.

Amy felt her heart speed up and she blushed.

_Stupid sexy Slappy..._

* * *

"I hate this part."Margo said sadly as she slipped on her pink stockings that stopped just below her pettiskirt.

"It'll be okay. It's just two hours, right?"a short girl with blonde hair in tight curls said to Margo as she slipped on her shoes.

"It feels like an eternity when those guys are staring at us like pieces of meat...",another girl with curled black pig tails said as she applied her fake eyelashes.

Evangeline and Missy were two of the seven girls hired for this dinner conference. The others were Jessie and Cameron.

They were all between the ages of fourteen and seventeen and dressed in black and white lolita style dresses that Amy had added individual touches to depending on the girl wearing them.

"It's almost time."Margo said looking at the grandfather clock beside the door. It read ten till ten with a crescent moon and stars decorating the face.

"Margo, can you help me with my skirt? I don't get how this thing works!"Lizzy called to her from behind a folding screen.

Margo sashayed across the room to her.

"Thanks." Lizzy said in a mess of frills around her waist.

"You got it all twisted up in these suspenders, silly!"Margo giggled at her and began unfurling it.

Lizzy needed to talk to Margo.

She really just wanted to back out of this whole thing, but she couldn't leave Margo there alone. "Hey Margo.."she said quietly unsure,"..is it too late for us to back out of this? I mean, we could just go get some cheese fries or something instead..."she asked her quietly. Lizzy immediately regretted saying anything when Margo looked at her with those sad aqua eyes.

Margo was filled with disappointment,"What..why..?"she asked.

Lizzy was wearing her hair in a Castle bob tonight for convenience. She pushed her black bangs out of her eyes."I'm sorry. I thought I could do this, but now I'm not so sure."

Margo looked down sadly. "I can't go...but you can if you want to. I won't be upset."

The offer was sadly tempting. Lizzy though about how anxious the other girls that had already done this before looked. It was for sure this was not going to be fun. She might get groped or worse...but that could happen to Margo too. "Hey, I'm just kidding. I'm not going if you aren't."

Margo didn't raise her head. "You don't have to do it. I know how risky this is, even if we have people on the outside. This job is really like asking for something bad to happen to you...and sometimes they do."

Lizzy didn't like the sound of this,"Like what..?"she asked.

"They make us play silly games for entertainment and pressure whoever loses to drink shots of whatever alcohol we serve them. Every girl has had them get too friendly with them. There was this one girl who felt like she was being stalked for a while, until her parents moved."Margo said and started straightening Lizzy's skirt again. "I guess what really puts us on edge is that we all feel like it's a matter of time until something awful happens to one of us."

"Why does your dad let this happen?"Lizzy asked aghast.

"I joke about it, but I seriously think that one of the men there is blackmailing him. My dad does under the table stuff that could get him in a lot of trouble with the IRS."Margo finished her skirt and stood back up. "He could lose everything and could go to prison for it."

"Margo.."Lizzy didn't know what to say.

"Time to go ladies!"Missy shouted as everyone began to leave.

Margo closed her eyes and took a big breath. "I have to be brave."she said to herself. She opened her eyes an looked at Lizzy with pleading eyes,"I can't lose another parent. Please don't think badly of me for doing this,Lizzy."

"I could never!"Lizzy exclaimed. Margo had told her about what happened to her mother. She felt ashamed for making her feel so bad.

"It isn't much different from what I'm going to have to do. I have no room to judge you for doing the same thing as me." Lizzy sighed," I don't know what's going to happen this time when I go back."

Margo took her hand and gave it a squeeze."Did you find the girls you were looking for?"

"I did. I found Brittany on her school's website." They didn't look at each other but she naturally entangled her fingers with Margo's. "It's been a little over a year since Panic Park. It'll be weird seeing her again."

"We can be brave together."Margo said encouragingly.

Lizzy smiled. "I'd love it if you could go with me...but I can't get you any more involved."she said despite gripping her hand harder. "I don't know how deep this is going to go."she looked up at the same time as Margo. She stared into her misty eyes. She had to tell her..it wasn't fair not to."I'm serious. Somebody could die."

Margo couldn't hold back. Nothing upset her like the thought of someone she cared for dieing. She wrapped her arms around Lizzy started crying on her shoulder.

Lizzy felt like crying too. In the heat of the moment you can claim that you'd lasso the moon for someone, but actually living up to the words was completely different. The enormity of what Ned had asked her to do and what was happening to him finally hit her. It all felt so impossible.

"I want to go with you. Please let me go with you."Margo begged.

"MARGO! NEW GIRL! COME ON!", Missy shouted from the doorway. "What are you doing!?"

They both parted and Margo palmed away her tears.

Lizzy thought to ask her to runaway again, but she already knew the answer. "We'll be right there!"she shouted back.

Margo looked at Lizzy, wondering if she was sure about staying. All Lizzy did was smile back at her. Margo sniffled and smile back. "Where is she? Brittany?"

"She's in Boston."Lizzy replied.

"Okay. I'll buy some plane tickets for us tomorrow."she said with a smile.

"Margo.."she protested but knew it was pointless to argue now.

"We have to get going. They started five minutes ago."Margo said and took Lizzy by the hand.

They left together and it would be a long while before they would part ways again.

* * *

Amy tightened the deep red laces on her black leather corset, then stepped out of a dressing stall.

She hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but she had heard every word of her friend's conversation.

She should have known that Margo wouldn't joke about something like her father being blackmailed. Amy mentally chided herself and she thought over what she had heard.

What did Lizzy have in Boston? And what was Panic Park? Was that where something could_ KILL_ her?

Amy tied off her laces and clipped her stockings to her garter belt that was hidden under her pettiskirt.

This was going to bug her all night.


	21. Chapter 21

The party was coming to an end.

A few of the older gentlemen left for the evening and it looked like the room was about to thin out more.

Boredom was what originally inspired him to learn to play. He didn't think about his previous life much after his old master died.

_Some things were best left in the past._

No one could see Slappy with the piano turned the way it was. They wouldn't notice that he wasn't pushing the pedals with his feet. Slappy had to use his influence for that as he always had. The room had grown thick with a miasma of cigar smoke as well that helped to obscure things further.

Slappy inhaled slowly and deeply. He didn't breath in the living sense, but if he wanted, he could draw in what he liked from the air. He savored the aroma and the burn of it. It was one of the few indulgences demonic creatures were allowed.

Smoke, alcohol, and sex were the big three.  
He had never had a use for the sex aspect since his physique hadn't been compatible, but at the moment he was enjoying the other two. It was the burn on both counts that were so appealing. A soothing reminder of his hellfire heritage.

Yet another thing he would need to teach Ray about.

He took a sip from his short glass tumbler, currently near empty, of cognac and let it sit in his mouth a few seconds for the liquor to absorb into his being. He felt fairly pleased with his decision to don the human illusion tonight. Otherwise, he wouldn't have lips to keep the drink in place.

He honestly hated using this ability. The idea of being human disgusted him, even if it did have it's perks.

Slappy diminished his performance as Ray began his uptick alongside the acoustic guitar player. He drank the last of his cup and rolled up his sleeves. His suit jacket lay beside him on the piano bench and as he looked at it he thought about Amy.

_It was time for her little dinner party._

His eye twitched. The idea didn't sit well with him of her parading herself in front of those men in _that_ dress.

_Serving them._

The thought alone made him growl.

_She was only meant to serve him.._

As Ray finished, the lights brighten in the room.  
The show was over.  
He took a deep breath to calm his nerves.  
It wasn't as if he hadn't played for an audience before, but it had been a while and he had known everyone he was performing for then.  
He turned to Slappy and tilted down the tinted glasses Dawes had included in the box for him,"Are we done?"

Slappy set his glass back on it's coaster and collected his sheet music. "Take a bow."he said then closed the piano.

Ray slipped his harmonica in his pocket as the other musicians noisily packed away their instruments. "I'd rather not."

"Suit yourself." Slappy slipped off the bench and pushed it back up to the piano.

A familiar man walked up through the drifts of smoke and up onto the low stage with them. "I have to admit, I'm impressed."he said and shook Ray's hand then offered a hand to Slappy who ignored it. "Well.."Margo's father said after an uncomfortable moment,"..when I hired you it was purely on Amy's name. She's a very good friend of my daughter's you know." He absentmindedly straightened out his shirt cuffs,"I'm glad I did. You are both very talented." He looked back up and smiled,"Amy has good taste in friends."

Slappy thought to laugh at the man, but he didn't feel in the mood to. He narrowed his eyes,"Speaking of Amy, where is she now?"

A look of apprehension flickered through his eyes,"She's tending to a private conference at the moment. It should be over at midnight."

Slappy picked up his jacket and folded it neatly over his arm,"That's a little late for young ladies to be out, isn't it?"

He cleared his throat and smiled tiredly as he used his glossy words with hidden meanings,"Amy is a very sturdy girl. She'll be fine for one night, I assure you. There is no one else better for the job."

"That's good to hear."Ray said, wanting to end the conversation.

"Right...then.."Margo's father reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two envelopes,"..here you are, and thank you for your performances. They were delightful. I hope to work with you again."he said and handed over their payment then strode off to find and pay the other musicians who had most likely gone to the employee lounge.

"That went well. I think I may have even had fun." Ray said then looked down to Slappy when he failed to respond. He was still glaring in the direction that Amy's friend's father had left. Ray sighed,"Why don't we go check up on Amy?"he suggested so Slappy wouldn't have to.

Slappy thought a moment. He had said he wouldn't interfere...but then again.."Alright. Let's go see how 'sturdy' she is.."he said with a devious smile.

* * *

The night had gone as it usually did.

They started with dinner, then had the girls play another stupid game.  
This time it was bouncing balloons with their heads and whatever girl let one fall to the floor had to stand on her head for ten seconds.  
They had even been 'kind' enough to 'help' the loser by holding her up by her ankles.

After a dozen or so rounds they tired of the game and had dessert and coffee served to them. All the girls except for Amy took turns feeding various cakes and puddings to the guests and pouring their coffee. Jessie and Cameron were notorious flirts and played this part well.  
Evangeline was terribly shy like Margo and Missy was sassy which seemed particularly appealing to the men for some reason.  
For her first night, Lizzy just poured coffee.

"OUCH! DAMN!"a man with salt and pepper colored hair cursed as he backed away from little Evangeline. "What?"he asked as he glared at Amy.

"You heard the lady. She's busy and doesn't want to sit in your lap."Amy said aggressively still brandishing her long leather glove.

Men began laughing around the long table in the center of the room. "Look who Amy caught this time!"one of them joked.

"Go back to your seat, Mr. Blue." Amy said with a vicious point of her finger to the table, maintaining her 'disciplinary' persona that the patrons had attributed to her.

He glared once more at Amy and walked away.

Evangeline smiled timidly at her then pushed a cart of desserts to a small adjoining kitchen.

Amy mused a moment on how stupid it was that the men had taken on colors as their names instead of real ones. As if that would help them if they needed to be picked out of a line-up or something.

Amy stalked the room like a wolf watching over a heard of lambs. A heard of lambs amongst other wolves. This was her role, she was the one that kept an eye out for the other girls while they played their roles.

She hated that there were some things that she_ had_ to let go at Margo's father's request. He said he needed the guests to leave satisfied and that thought alone made Amy shudder with disgust.

There was a limit of how far she'd let things go, though. She could usually gauge a situation with Margo's help. If Margo looked distressed, it meant she could step in.

Amy heard a light,sharp gasp and whipped around on her heel. "Mr. Gold!"Amy briskly strode over and slammed her boot down on the edge of the table across from where he was seated. "Get your hand out from under Margo's skirt right now!"she yelled in her most intimidating voice.

Mr. Gold was a younger looking man with dyed blonde hair and copper eyes. He visibly tightened his grip under Margo's skirt and she in turn cried out but didn't try to get away. She only held her head in shame. "Give it a rest, Amy."he said with a daring look in his eyes,"You're real _cute_, but I've paid plenty and I'm entitled to what I've purchased."

The room had gone quiet and all eyes where on them.

Amy's eyes widened, but she only hesitated a moment before jumping up onto the table and kicking dishes and glasses out of her way, making a mess. Amy towered above him on the edge of the table. "I'm not making threats Mr. Gold. I'm warning you! Let go of Margo!"she yelled and stomped her boot down on the table with considerable force, causing the everything on it to shudder.

"Amy...get down.."Margo whispered,"...it's okay. Don't worry about me."

Mr. Gold glared up at Amy smugly. "See, now be a good little slave and clean up this mess. Then you can fetch me some more coffee since you ruined my last cup."

"NO."Amy growled through clinched teeth.

"_Amy, just do it please_!"Margo begged.

Mr. Gold glared at Amy dangerously. "You do realize that this is your_ job_, don't you? I paid for this conference hall and _entertainment_. _Entertainment_ meaning every girl here _and_ you."

Amy sneered down at him.

"You all belong to me for the next hour _and_.."he pinched the end of the ribbon on the front of Margo's dress and pulled it, exposing her breast,"..I expect to be accommodated to."

Amy snapped. She slapped him so fast in the face with her leather glove that, she didn't register she had done it until after the noise it made echoed off the walls.

He looked utterly stunned for a moment, then his face contorted into hideous mask of rage. "_YOU LITTLE BITCH!_" He jumped out of his chair, shoving Margo away as if she were nothing and grabbed for Amy's legs.

Amy evaded his first two snatches at her, but before she could get off of the table, he caught her. Amy legs were yanked out from beneath her and she fell flat on her back to the table. She hit her head and had the wind knocked out of her,immobilizing her for a few moments.

Mr. Gold jerked her body to him so she was laying on the table, with him between her legs. With Amy stunned, he pinned her arms above her head. "You fucking want to play rough? I can play _real rough_, bitch!"he swore at her and rutted hips hard into hers, giving her an idea of what was about to happen to her.

Amy began to cough and catch her breath. She became aware of the position she was in just as Mr. Gold forced his body over hers, over powering her.

He turned his head and spoke in a low voice in her ear,"_We are all going to be very rough with you._"

A chill ran through her veins at his words. She glared up at him with a vitreous look and hissed back,"_You can go fuck yourself._"

Everyone in the room was mortified by the situation. The men looked horrified and just as at a loss of what to do as the girls were, until Lizzy grabbed a chair and slammed it into Mr. Gold's back.

"GAAH!" Mr. Gold loosened his grip on Amy and she somehow bucked him off of her.

Amy wriggled out from under the man. He grabbed again for her, but Lizzy yanked Amy away first.

"Run!"Lizzy yelled and helped Amy back onto her feet.

Mr. Gold yelled in frustration and grabbed a sharp knife from the table. He stared at the two girls, seeing the world only in red hues. "Don't either of you fucking run-!"he yelled and attacked them.

"Oh my god! Stop him!"Missy implored one of the men.

"I-I can't! He's my boss!"the man cried back to her.

"GRRAAAH!"Amy pushed Lizzy out of the way and tackled Mr. Gold around the waist. "Margo! Go get your dad!"

"AMY!"Margo shrieked.

Mr. Gold grappled with Amy around his waist briefly, then caught his footing and kneed her in the gut until she let go, then slung her to the floor. He was quickly on top of her again. She stared up at him with that wild, defiant look in her eyes that he detested. He choked her with one hand to hold her down, then pulled back the other holding tightly to the long sharp knife.

"Let her go!"Lizzy screamed as she jumped onto Mr. Gold's back like a deranged koala bear.

Amy saw the glint of light come off the shining blade as it came down. Amy screamed and Mr. Gold cursed as his aim was thrown off by the sudden weight on his back.

Mr. Gold tried to shake the girl off then arched his back, knocking her backwards.

Lizzy saw stars before she blacked out from him knocking her head on the table.

He heard a loud 'thunk' then the weigh leave him. The girl lay in a heap behind him, unconscious. He grinned and looked back down to Amy.

Amy curled up on her side in pain and grasped at her bleeding shoulder.

He lifted the knife again. He wouldn't miss this time.

Her eyes went wide in surprise for moment as he brought the blade down as hard as he could.

Mr. Gold gasped. He was suddenly jerked back and thrown across the floor before his fist could make contact.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" Mr. Gold screamed and clamored up onto his feet.

There was a man kneeling beside Amy that he didn't recognize. Behind them, Mr. Gold saw the doors to the room were open and everyone was running out except for an unfamiliar blonde guy coming in. "You pencil-dicked cowards! Come back or you're all fired!"

"Cowards..?"the man repeated in an acidic tone.

Mr. Gold reached for the knife, but he had dropped it when he had been thrown. It lay closer to the man by Amy.

Mr. Gold's eyes widened in terror when he..no,_ IT_ looked at him.

"Only cowards force themselves on defenseless women.."he hissed at the disgusting human. He picked up the bloodied knife and rose to his feet. He stalked ominously towards the man. Something between a snarl and a smile seemed to spread across his hardened face.

Mr. Gold was frozen in horror.

"Not that I'm including Amy in that description..."he said in a voice, waving the knife back and forth in his hand. Red and green light flickered like flame behind his glassy eyes as he violently lifted Mr. Gold up by the front of his shirt like he were only a sack of potatoes,"..but there is something you should know.."

Amy trembled, from the sharp pain in her shoulder or the awe she felt at that moment, she couldn't be sure.  
She couldn't believe her eyes.  
_That was Slappy!_  
He was almost six feet tall and absolutely glowing with power that fell off him in green vaporous tendrils. He looked the same as she had when they had parted ways earlier, but his segmented jaw was back and his skin looked wooden as did his hair. The closest thing she could think of was that he looked like a realistic mannequin version of himself.

She couldn't believe it_...  
A_my groaned internally.  
_He fucking saved her again!_

"_M-MONSTER!_"Mr. Gold shrieked in a octave that would make a castrati weep, as he kicked wildly in the air.

Slappy growled and seemed to shake as he addressed the repugnant human in his grip. _"You should know, that Amy is MINE and NO ONE gives her orders but ME!_" he said in a guttural voice.  
_"And if you think you can take what's MINE you had better have the power to BACK IT UP!_"he snarled vehemently at Mr. Gold then savagely threw him down the length of the dinning table. Slappy stormed down the table after Mr. Gold who was screaming in terror.

He scrambled and fumbled backwards from Slappy on his elbows until he reached the end of the table.

Slappy leaped on top of Mr. Gold, who has gone ashen as death. He stabbed the tip of the knife into Mr. Gold's cheek and yelled inches away from his face,"**_BECAUSE I'M A JEALOUS MOTHERFUCKER!_**"

In one quick motion he sliced his cheek open.


	22. Chapter 22

"Stop it! Ya' can't kill him!"Amy yelled as she tried to stand up.

Ray caught her around her waist with his arm. "Amy, we need to leave."

Amy hadn't noticed when Ray come up beside her, but she leaned against him for support. "Ray, we have to stop Slappy!"

He looked at her in disbelief,"_Why?_"

Ray had seen everything that had happened. He and Slappy had been watching from a make-shift scrying dish that Slappy had thrown together with a mirror, a large bowl, one of Amy's hairs, and some water.

Slappy had thought her predicament was funny at first, with that smug look on his face, then when that man started ordering Amy around, he became very dark. When that man attacked her, Slappy flipped his shit. He broke the mirror and cut the fuck out of Ray's hand and drank his blood. After that, Slappy contorted and transformed into whatever he was now.

Even with the speed they had responded with, from the look of Amy, they were still too late.

Ray scooped Amy up in his arms, bridal style. "That guy tried to kill you, Amy! Let Slappy give him what he deserves!"

Amy put her bloodied hand on Ray's cheek and pushed away, trying to jump out of his arms,"If he he murders that guy he could turn super evil again!"

Ray stumbled for a step as his equilibrium was thrown off. "He's a demon! He's already super evil!"

"No, he's not! Slappy's got good in him!"she yelled at Ray.

Ray groaned in frustration and fumbled to keep Amy's wriggling form in his arms. "Stop struggling! You're getting blood everywhere!"

Amy stopped and gasped. She looked at all the dark smears on Ray's suit and her dress. "Dammit Ray! I just made these and now they're ruined! Put me down already!"

"_What did you say about me..?_"Slappy asking in a chilling voice, dark and smooth as black silk.

Amy ceased her struggles and stared at Slappy.  
She realized she didn't hear Mr. Gold's screams anymore.  
In fact, it had become eerily quiet.

The lights finally gave out, making the only light in the room the ethereal mist that flowed from and around Slappy. Light flickered then extinguished in the hall as well, sending Slappy's circulating aura into further contrast.

He stepped down from the table making a heavy noise as he hit the floor. He walked slowly over to them, his ambiance following him dutifully. The light in his eyes burned bright living green with thin halos of electric red around his pupils. They left streaking light trails, like tail lights on a speeding car at night, as he came closer.

"Did.."Amy sank closer against Ray's chest making herself small,"..did you kill him?"

Slappy looked at her with his searing gaze, but he remained silent. He gently placed his hand over her wound, bloodying his palm.

A clatter issued from the hall and Margo's voice called out distantly for Lizzy. Flashlight beams weakly searched as the humans came closer.

"Slappy, we need to go."Ray stated softly.

Amy peered up at Ray and held her breath. He had changed to his demonic self and seemed to be producing a very faint white or grey aura. Suddenly, she felt somewhat insignificant between the two demons she called friends.

"Leave me here. I need to stay behind and talk to the cops."Amy volunteered.

Ray frowned. "Amy, You're hurt."

Amy sighed. "Yeah, but Margo saw him stab me. I bet she called an ambulance. Just go guys, I'll be fine on my own."

Slappy removed his hand and reached into one of his vest pockets. "What will you tell the cops?"he asked and produced a white handkerchief to cover her injury with.

"Not that a possessed mannequin saved my life.."Amy's eyes shifted to the left and she grumbled in humiliation,"..._again_."

Slappy's gaze softened and a quiet laugh emanated from him. He placed her hand over the cloth on her wound. "Heaven forbid."  
He looked to Ray. " Leave her. Set her down by Lizzy and I'll get us out of here."

Ray looked down at the girl in his arms. Her shoulder was still bleeding, but slowly. "Are you sure? I don't like leaving you like this, Amy."

Amy forced a smile and winked at him. "Get outta here, man."

Ray breathed deeply then swiftly lay Amy down with the unconscious dark haired girl on the floor. "We'll see you at home, okay?"

Amy winched and held her shoulder tenderly. "I'll see ya."

With that, Slappy placed his hand on Ray's shoulder, ushering him. They briskly strode into the darkness.

Amy tried to relax as she watched her demons diminish into the shadows.

* * *

"So, what was that?"Ray finally asked about a mile from Amy's house.

"I'm not sure. I didn't know what would happen when I drank your blood."Slappy admitted coolly. He walked beside Ray, now back in his dummy form. He had to force his body to return to this form, it was not very willing to give up the power he received from Ray.

"That's kinda irresponsible.." Ray glanced at the angle of his left hand where his thumb and index finger met. The wound had healed seconds after Slappy cut him, but it had hurt like a mother when he did it. "Just a little bit did that, huh?"he said pantomiming Slappy's sudden growth spurt from earlier.

Slappy sighed and tightened his small wooden fists in his pockets."It's still in my system. I'm having a little trouble suppressing it now, actually."

He regretted his knee-jerk reaction to Amy. Ray's blood was an intoxicating concoction of blood;both living and dead, sex; a powerful and violent desire for the company of flesh and it's destruction, and the dark magic that held it together. It was still twisting it's way through him and making him uncomfortable as hell.

Slappy gained a new respect for the kid being able to manage it so damn well.

"Really?"Ray asked in surprise."I didn't realize. Sorry."

He needed to take his mind off of things. "You did good tonight."he said,complimenting Ray on his performance.

Ray smiled then laughed at a thought,"You're slave driving really paid off."

Slappy grinned back at him. "Now, why can't all my slaves be as obedient as you?"he joked.

It was then that Ray remembered something that happened when they had checked on Amy. Slappy looked like he was about to have a heart attack when he saw the dark haired girl who was working with Amy. He smirked broadly,"Hey, what's the story with that girl you were so keen on avoiding? You said she was your 'Ex'?"

Slappy's body language turned to embarrassment as he ducked his head down. "She...she's an ex-slave."

_He was sensing a pattern here..._

"She looked like she was Amy's age..." Ray narrowed his eyes at Slappy and grinned devilishly. "Do you have a thing for teenage girls, Slappy?"

"What!? NO!"he denied quickly and loudly.

"Ha ha!" The chance to tease Slappy was a guilty indulgence he couldn't pass up. "It's okay if you do. I won't tell anybody."he said and slipped his hands in his pockets, mimicking Slappy.

"It..I'm..."Slappy couldn't explain why he always gone after young girls. It was some kind of compulsion he couldn't overcome. One thing was sure, he was certain that it had never been a sexual thing. But he did have a preference. "Shut up, Ray."

They walked for another few minutes thinking quietly to themselves before Ray voiced his musings,"We're both technically old men, really. Do you think age differences stop mattering after a certain amount of time?"

Slappy shrugged his shoulders,"I guess. As long as it's an understood,mutual relationship with someone experienced enough to understand what's going on, it shouldn't matter for creatures like us."

That made Ray feel a little better about how he had been behaving around Amy. Even more about how he felt towards Amanda. "So, did she dump you?"he asked.

_Did he end up in a dumpster?  
Then, yes, he had been dumped._

"Something like that."Slappy said ruefully.

Ray narrowed his eyes at Slappy,"I take it Amy doesn't know about her?"

"No. Don't tell her."Slappy responded quickly.

Ray couldn't help but wonder aloud,"Are there..any others..?"

Slappy did a quick tally in his head,"Five others, I think. If I'm not counting the bystanders or Lindy."

"Lindy..?" Ray echoed wondering when he had heard the name before. "Oh! You mean that girl on T.V., don't you?"

"Yes." Slappy looked straight ahead and sighed,"She was different."

From the tone in Slappy's voice he could tell it was something he shouldn't pry into.

"Don't worry, we'll find her."Ray said and left it at that.

* * *

After what had seemed like hours, Slappy and Ray stepped into the house with a sigh of relief.

Until they saw Dennis.

"WHY IS AMY BEING DETAINED AT THE POLICE STATION DOWNTOWN !?"he screeched at them the moment they stepped through the door. Dennis stood there with his phone in his hand, still wearing his hospital scrubs, and glaring holes through them both angrily. "I just got off the phone with the police and they said she had been stabbed! Now, are you two going to tell me what happened or do I have to assume the worst!?"

"Amy is going to be okay."Slappy said and tiredly walked past Dennis toward the basement.

In an instant Dennis spotted blood on Slappy's hand. He roughly seize him by the wrist and jerked his hand up between their faces. "Who's blood is this!?"

Slappy glared back in ferocity at Dennis. A glare that would make lesser men curl up and hide.  
To Slappy's surprise, Dennis didn't waver, but returned the glare with fervor.  
"It's Amy's."he stated without any further explanation.

Ray face palmed then tried to clarify,"It isn't what you think, Dennis."

Dennis didn't move in any way other than miniscule eye movements as he stared into Slappy's unapologetic blue eyes.

_Slappy wasn't sorry. __Slappy didn't even care that Amy was injured and alone in the company of real criminals._

Seething hurt and indignation coiled deep in Dennis and without warning he punched Slappy square in the jaw.

The moment went by in a flash and Slappy had to admit it was a good hit. He would have stumbled into the wall if Dennis didn't still have a vice grip like hold on him. He clenched his jaw his eye twitched. Passionate wrath boiled inside of him, but he didn't retaliate.

_He probably deserved that._

Dennis' whole body trembled with rage, "So, you just left her there!?"

"It's not like that -"Ray said and took a step forward.

Dennis scowled at him and pointed an accusing finger."You are just as much to blame, Ray!"

He dropped Slappy's wrist and stormed into the kitchen to get his car keys. "You're both ass holes!"he yelled at them before he left, slamming the door to the garage behind him.

Slappy and Ray stood in silence until they heard the garage door open, then close, and Dennis' headlights dance across the living room, then disappear.

Slappy looked at Ray and Ray looked at Slappy.

Ray broke the silence and asked,"How does he drive a car?"


	23. Chapter 23

Amy felt like microwaved-warmed crap. She had been at the police station for four hours while she was questioned and waited for Dennis to rescue her.

Speaking of which, Dennis had been eerily quite since he had picked her up from the police station.

The ride home had been completely silent and he hadn't looked her in the eye even once. She had tried staring straight at him to provoke even a glace from him but got no response. It was unnerving. She had never seen him so pissed.

At home, Dennis sat across from Amy in his room. He rubbed some sanitizer on his hands, then promptly began setting out medical utensils on a sterile cloth across his desk. He wanted to yell at her, but his voice came out low and even. "Take your clothes off and get on my bed."

"Huh!?" Amy knew her eyes had to be as wide as saucers. "What? Why?"Amy asked as her face flushed with color.

Dennis meticulously straightened his tools on the white cloth, a subconscious act to hold himself together. "You need medical attention. I'm going to treat your wound, so, undress, lie down, and place your injured shoulder over where I laid out the towel."

Amy scrunched her nose up at his uncharacteristic bossiness. Who was he all of the sudden? Slappy?  
Amy cleared her throat,"You don't have to go to the trouble, Denny. The paramedics said it was only a flesh wound." Amy's arm was in a sling and hurt to move but she grit her teeth, faked a smile, and feigned a painless wave. "See..? I just need some sleep then we can wake up in the morning and pretend none of this ever happened."she said in an bemused tone.

Dennis quickly set a set of scissors down aggressively. Amy was really beginning to frustrate him. Did she really have no idea what she had done?

Amy jumped in her skin. She had never been scared of Dennis until now. He was being so curt with her. Amy shifted on her feet and averted her eyes from him. She quietly alternated between tinges of fright and something like shame.

Dennis pointed to his futon behind her and instructed Amy sternly."Lie down."

Amy couldn't take the elephant in the room anymore. She stepped closer to him and crouched down. "What's going on with you? You barely said a word to me all night then you treat me like_** I** _did something wrong..?"

He could feel her eyes boring holes into him again. He was tired. Dennis rarely became so tired that he'd need to sleep, when he did it usually involved Amy, but right now he could tell it was going to be one of those nights. He was in no mood for her stubbornness. "Amy, I don't want to talk about it right now. Stop deflecting and just lie down." He eyed his scalpel. He could see Amy's distorted image in the blade. "I've seen your breasts before and I've done enough catheters to know what a vagina looks like. I certainly HOPE you're wearing panties with that '_dress_', but if not, it isn't anything I haven't already acquainted myself with. Just lie down."

Amy could have been knocked over with a feather. "Of course I'm w-wearing p-panties!"she stuttered in a high pitched shriek. She stood back up and frowned hard.  
Where the hell did this take-no-shit Dennis come from? Wasn't this the same Dennis that excused himself from the room during PG13 implied sex scenes!? Amy stood there feeling conflicted as to if she should do as he said or not.

Dennis looked at her for the first time that night. His brown glass eyes holding a stare as intense as one Slappy could give, but without the threat of violence.

Amy stared into them searching for something she couldn't define.

She kept forgetting that he was a doll, somehow. It was only in quiet recognized moments that she was reminded of how difficult it could be to read something that was never intended to have emotions without someone else pulling the strings.

She sighed then walked to his bed. With hesitation,she loosened the red laces at the back of her corset with one hand. The dress slipped off easily and there she stood mostly naked in front of him. She felt shameless even if it was just Dennis. Amy bit her lip and stepped out of the ruffles and leather around her ankles then timidly walked over to his futon. She sat on the edge to take off her boots. She slid off one boot, then she flinched when his hand met hers as she was unzipping the second one. Dennis knelt before her, wordlessly, he took over and slipped it off, dropping the shoe to the floor with a thud. His cold fingers ghosted over the bandage at her ankle causing Amy to shiver.

"I'll need to change out the dressing on this, too."he thought aloud. Her stocking would need to go first. Dennis traced his fingers up the curves of her leg until he reached the garter clasp at the top of her thigh. It only took a flick of his fingers to remove it. He slipped his digits beneath the lip of the black lace that he didn't know she owned and guided the stocking down the length of her leg. He carefully removed the lingerie, then dropped it to the floor.  
Dennis took a moment and looked at his worn-ragged work still medically tapped around her ankle. From there his eyes followed the flow of her skin up her body. from her rounded hips, to her waist that dipped in at both sides, and to petite pink tipped mounds. For a brief moment he thought of how she was much curvier than Sara before catching himself and looked away deftly.  
"Remove your arm sling and lie down."he said quickly. He stood back up then turned to his desk to sanitize his hands again and slip on some sterile gloves.

Amy distractedly fumbled with the clasp on her arm sling and popped it open too soon. "AH!"Amy cringed in pain. Her unsupported arm's own weight pulled on the tender, injured flesh. Amy quickly grabbed and supported it with her other arm before laying back on his bed. "_Tap-dancing Jesus, it hurts worse now than it did when it happened..!_"she hissed as she settled in.

"Let's have a look." Dennis turned on a bright lap on his desk and directed the light onto her injury. He grimaced inwardly at the crude bandage and mess of dried blood on her shoulder. "This is unacceptable."  
Cautiously, he searched the rim of the medical tape that was holding a ball of gauze to her shoulder with his finger tips for a loose edge to pull. Amy whimpered and he stopped abruptly. "Are you okay?"he asked automatically. Amy had her eyes closed and her face was drawn in anxiety as she bit her bottom lip. He hadn't meant to hurt her. He moved to place a reassuring touch her cheek, then he noticed the bruises around her throat. The blues and opaque bronze colored her skin in the shape of large hands.  
The police had said she'd been attacked.  
All his frustration towards Amy was forgotten as he delicately traced the shape of the fingers on her still heated skin all the way to the corner of her jaw.  
An awful thought occurred to him and he wanted to hear the truth from her. "Did the same person that stabbed you do this, too?"

Amy opened her eyes at the question. She turned her head and looked at him. He didn't look mad at her anymore. She let out a miniscule sigh of relief. "Yeah, but it doesn't hurt much. I'm okay, Denny."

He couldn't believe her sometimes. Dennis looked back at the bruises and shook his head. "It's not okay, Amy..."he said softly.

"Am I interrupting?"Slappy's harsh voice rang from the doorway.

Dennis looked over his shoulder at him. "No."he said coolly and stood up straight.

Slappy sauntered in and looked at his all but naked slave on his some-what rival's bed. He felt a tug of sympathy for her. She had certainly seen better days.

Amy had quickly covered her breasts with her other arm to hold onto some shred of dignity. She furrowed her brow at Slappy. "What? He's patching me up! Stop staring at me ya Pinocchio pervert!"

Slappy crossed his arms and rolled his eyes at her. "I can look if I want to, _slave_. But there isn't really anything to see, is there?"

"HEY!"Amy yelled indignantly. "I'LL MAKE YOU SEE STARS!" She pushed her weight onto her injured arm in an attempt to sit up, then shrieked in pain. She fell back to the bed singing a hymnal of curses.

Dennis pressed a hand to her chest and touched her injured shoulder lightly. "Take it easy, Amy. You're only making it worse." He gave Slappy a dirty look.

Slappy sneered back at him. "The hand prints are too big to be mine. I obviously wasn't the one that did this to her, termite-brain."

Slappy disgusted him, but he was right. Dennis turned back to Amy. Besides that, at the moment he could use some help and there was no one else around. "I need some cool, damp wash cloths and two more dry towels, Slappy. If you would, please get them."

Amy shivered

Dennis gently stroked her cheek and she leaned into his touch. "And the throw blanket from the back of the couch in the living room."he added.

**MURDER.**

That was what was on Slappy's mind. He wasn't joking about being a jealous person. Luckily, he was also a practical one as well. Murdering him would have to be put on hold for now. He temporarily relented his homicidal desire for a small amount of compliance. Slappy turned around then walked into the hall,"Ray. You heard him."he told the younger demon.

Ray smirked then nodded. "I got it."he said and walked to the guest bathroom.

Slappy turned back around just as Dennis started pulling the plasma and blood soaked bandage away from Amy's shoulder. She whimpered and writhed in pain beneath his hands. The sight sent a jolt of something unexpected and protective through him. Slappy hurried across the room.

Dennis spotted his approach out of the corner eye,"Slappy, please help hold Amy down. The idiots put tape directly over the wound."

"What! No!"Amy protested loudly and unnoticed.

Slappy glared at him. He hated taking orders, but the please made it a request and that he could deal with. He may detest Dennis, but he did trust that the fool had Amy's best interest at heart. He glanced at her and she looked back with a wide-eyed, odd expression for a moment then quickly turned her head away. Slappy repressed a blossoming emotion and grumbled then climbed onto the bed, kneeling in the space between her head and the wall. Amy's head was between his knees and as he adjusted her hair spilled around them in twisting tendrils.

"She going to start jerking around after I start. Hold her down."Dennis instructed him solemnly, then moved so Slappy could get a comfortable, firm hold on her right arm.

"W-wait!"she cried, giving them pause. Amy didn't like this. For one; she didn't want to move her arm because then Slappy would see how small her chest really was. Real boobs have a tendency to hide in armpits when women lay down. It was one of her few insecurities that still bothered her. And another thing; she hated being restrained. It made her feel claustrophobic.  
"You don't have t-to do that. I-I'll hold still."she said shakily, feeling beyond nervous. "I promise."

Dennis shook his head,"Amy, this is really going to hurt. I don't have any numbing ointment or syringes either. You aren't going to be able to help but react after I begin. I'll make it as quick as possible, okay?" Dennis stepped back to his desk and selected a bottle of pills from his desk and a bottle of water from desk drawer. "The best I can do for pain is give you some pills right now, but they will take thirty to forty minutes to kick in." He unscrewed the top of the water and set it aside, then opened the pills and took out one that looked like a thick, little white button. He closed up the pill bottle again and took the water and pill a pace back to the bedside. "Can you sit up for me?"

The shitty ambulance bandage had only been pulled a quarter of the way off and she already felt a terrible ache and burn radiating from her wound. It hurt like a motherfucker. Amy took a breath,"Yeah, hold on...!"she whined and dropped back on the bed. Without adrenaline or endorphins running through her, the wound hurt a thousand times worse. Even moving it a little made it hurt all the way to her ears. "Sorry...it really hurts..."

"Use your other arm to prop yourself up with, idiot."he chastised her.

Amy blushed and trembled. "I don't want you to see them..."she said sadly.

"I don't care about your hang-ups. I'm a demon doll. The hell do you think I actually care about human breasts?" Slappy said then slipped his palms beneath Amy's shoulder blades and lifted her. He wasn't about to wait for her to sit up on her own.

Amy gasped then groaned in pain as he lifted her up just enough to be able to take the medicine. His words sunk in.

Amy's skin had gone clammy and her muscles tense under his hands. It was gross, but couldn't be helped. He peered over her shoulder as she reluctantly removed her arm from her breasts and took the pill from Dennis' outstretched palm. After she put it on her tongue she took the bottle of water and washed it down. To his unwanted dismay, the bottle was trembling in her grip as she handed it back to Dennis.  
He wondered if she was in that much pain or if she was frightened? He was gentler when he helped her lie back down as Ray returned.

Dennis took the drink and set it aside, then motioned to Ray where to set the items he had asked for.

Amy closed her eyes in humiliation, "Well, everybody has seen my boobs now. Or lack there of. Great."she announced. Her eyes flew open when she felt Slappy's cool firm grasp press down on her arms. He looked down at her when she looked up at him.

Looking down, he saw fear and trust mixed together in the hazel-green eyes that stared up at him. She had never looked at him like that before.

"Ray, lay the blanket over her lower half, please." Dennis said and slipped on a face mask then changed out his gloves. The face mask wasn't necessary, but it help to disassociate the pain with the person doing it. He took an aesthetic breath and mentally prepared himself for what he had done to strangers in the ER, but hadn't had the unfortunate pleasure with Amy.  
"Amy,"he said to pull her attention away from her staring match with Slappy. They both flinched then looked at him. "Are you ready?"

"Nuh uh."she said knowing this one was going to be bad. How bad, she could only gauge from the pain she felt when he was pulling the bandage off in the first place.

Dennis steepled his brows in sympathy,"Just trust Slappy to help you hold still and get through it."

Slappy glared wide eyed at Dennis. What was that nerd saying!? "Don't go giving her any expectations about me." He looked back down to Amy. "This is a one time thing. I'm only helping because I'd like to have something to laugh about later."

Ray balked at him,"Slappy, for gods sake-!"

Slappy ignored Ray and did a last minute adjustment so that Dennis could easily access the wound. "Don't expect anything from me, Amy." Slappy braced his weight down against her arms.

She closed her eyes and turn her head in the opposite direction of the wound. "Don't worry..I only expect the worst from you, Slappy."

He didn't respond.

Ray sighed at them. He covered Amy up with the soft olive green blanket then stood to the side, unsure of what he was supposed to be doing other than be available if needed. He watched as Dennis firmly grasped Amy's shoulder with one hand, then began to pull away the swollen yellow and red gauze.

Amy's whole body tensed up and she suppressed a scream. The tape peeled away traumatically slow she began to loose her composure.

He felt sick when he saw the wound re-open and blobs of blackish-brown blood roll out. The tape was stuck to the skin flap and Dennis was trying his best to remove it. "Those idiots..."Dennis said as the blobs fell from the re-opened gash. He took the opportunity to peer in and saw how far back the wound went. It was difficult to ignore Amy's wriggling and muffled cries of repressed pain as he diagnosed the extent of the damage. "Flesh is flayed from muscle and bone..incision went in at an angle.."

Amy's toes curled and she did her best to not breathe as the feeling of being pulled open hit her.  
_Ugh...she didn't realize she stunk so bad, either._  
The wound had an appalling, hot, metallic stench that made her nauseated as an insult to injury. Amy jumped under Slappy's hold and shrieked when the heat within the wound was doused with a cold spray.  
_The fuck was he doing!?_  
She knew what Dennis was talking about now. She couldn't stop herself from arching her back and drawing her legs up, her whole body quivering. She couldn't take it anymore when she felt him put something in the gash,"STOP! DENNIS! STOP! TIMEOUT!"she screamed and began to plead.

This was the part he had been dreading,"Hold still, Amy. I can't stop now. I'm cleaning the wound, so don't move."he told her steadily as she began to fight Slappy's hold on her.

The cold gush hit her raw nerve endings again, feeling more like scalding oil than an iodine solution. "STOOOP! PLEASEE!"she wailed overcome with panic and pain.

"Ray. Grab her legs on hold her down. I'll hurt her if she keeps moving."Dennis ordered calmly as he continued his task. "Keep holding her steady, Slappy. You're doing a great so far."

Slappy was gonna slap that patronizing dick after this. He watched Ray jump on her legs and wrap his arms around them in a bear hug to get her still. Amy screamed and writhed in her skin against the three men.  
Slappy tried to focus on what Dennis was doing with all the blood and gore, but he couldn't help himself and evaluated her body as well. He was a demon inside after all. Human suffering equaled a certain amount of pleasure for him. He really couldn't help it. He felt sick satisfaction as Amy screamed, twisted, and cried beneath them. Her spine curved and small breasts rose to quiver with every shuddering breath. It all only made him hold her firmer.

"I'm starting the stitches. You're going to feel a series of pinches and some burn, Amy. Just hang on a little longer, it's almost over."Dennis said as soothingly as possible. He was doing his best not to let her agony get to him. He had grown men faint on him consistently when he did this at the ER.

"FUCK OFF DENNIS!"she screamed at him.

Dennis sighed. She was in pain and didn't mean it.

Amy panted and closed her eyes tightly as the torture continued. Her endorphins and adrenaline had finally kicked in and she was adjusting to the pain, but the other damage was done. She must have put on quite the embarrassing show for them...screaming and crying like a little girl.  
Well, fuck it.  
Amy had worked her way further between Slappy's legs and buried her face in his thigh for comfort for the rest.

Slappy shivered to his very core. Amy's hot breath was billowing rhythmically through his pants against his inner thigh. Her every moan and whimper of discomfort was accentuated with a distinctive press and brush of her lips. If anyone were looking at him now they would see him in the middle of a silent scream. Watching Amy had already put him on edge, but Ray's fucking demon-puberty blood was still in his system and if this didn't end soon, Slappy was going to lose his mind. "Hurry up, Dennis."

"Two minutes. I'm inserting fluid drain..."he said as he laced the instrument through an opening.

"I don't give a shit what you're doing, just get it done!"Slappy snapped at the other dummy.

Her skin being sewn shut, she felt herself fading into unconsciousness quickly. The medicine must have kicked in early or she had exhausted herself from flipping the fuck out, maybe both. "Slappy..."she whimpered his name thoughtlessly as short tremors of lingering pains shuddered through her body. She breathed in the smell of him. His clothes had a rich, smokey, almost sweet smell imbedded in them, behind that something like seared cedar. Her focus put her at ease enough to usher her into unconsciousness.

Dennis was good to his word with seconds to spare. He modestly taped a bandage over Amy's properly mended and cleaned injury then sat back in his desk chair. "Done."

Slappy slowly eased off of Amy, who was out cold.  
_Oh goddammit._  
He covered his face with his hands and maintained his fairly hunched posture.

"What's wrong? I thought this was_ supposed to be funny_ to you?"Dennis asked Slappy. He looked like he was either about to cry or vomit and neither aspect did Dennis fancy. "Why aren't you aren't laughing, huh?"

That smart mouthed pencil prick...He'd attack him right now if he could, but then everyone would see..his...problem. He supposed it was bound to happen sooner or later, but he was really hoping for later. "Shut up, Dennis.."

"Thank you for your help. I didn't want to have to take her back to the ER and have strangers do it." Dennis took off his face mask and crumpled it up then tossed it in his waste basket. "Do you think you could lift her up again so I can get the dirty towel?"he asked Slappy.

"Sure."he complied and Amy didn't wake. Suddenly, Slappy and Dennis both noticed Ray.

"Ray. Let go. It's over."Dennis said kindly to him.

"That was awful..."he said with his face muffled against the blanket.

"I hope she doesn't hold it against me."Dennis said as he slipped the dirty towels and contaminated supplies into a sanitary bag.

Ray sat up red eyed and sad looking. "I can't fucking stand it when girls get hurt or cry.."

"Me either."Dennis said tiredly then went to dispose of the bio hazard in the garage.

Slappy was going to be sick. Ray had been raised by only women. It made sense that he'd be sensitive toward them...but it was nothing to cry over. Slappy kept himself from making fun of Ray for now and just looked at Amy.  
She was fairly pale and shivering. "Ray, the blanket."he snapped his fingers at him,"Cover her up."

For a fleeting moment Ray thought it a shame to cover up her cute little breasts. "Yeah. I got it." he stood up beside the bed and pulled the blanket up to below her chin. "That...today was pretty hard, huh?"

"Really hard."Slappy grumbled still hunched forward.

Slappy didn't look like he wanted to leave Amy. Ray hoped Slappy wasn't as hard hearted as he put on at times. He looked as though he might be watching over her. "Are you going to stay in here with her for a while?"Ray asked.

"Yeah." Slappy said quickly.

Ray smiled,"Okay. I'm going to sleep. Try to get some rest too." Ray left feeling glad that Slappy could show a softer side.

Slappy sighed and relaxed a bit after the other two were gone. Tonight had been fairly awful, but he'd seen worse.  
Well...he'd never had to endure something like what was going on in his pants.  
He miserably wondered how long it took for boners to go away and how ridiculous it was in the first place.


	24. Chapter 24

Ice cold breaths of air chilled to the bone and bit at the skin of the trespassers. There was no life here. Empty eyes stared endlessly from every direction.

"Why did I have to come with you, master?"Kris asked fighting back shivers and clutching her shoulders.

His eyes glinted red in the cold dark of the dungeons as he peered over his shoulder back at her."A pet should follow it's master without question."

Her blue eyes held a faint lovely light that didn't belong in this place where souls were made to die. "Yes, master."she said despondently.

He smiled handsomely then held up the round lantern higher as they traveled deeper into the forest of dolls.

Slowly, Kris stopped and watched him let the darkness envelope her like a cold veil. She looked to her left and to her right. She could barely see them, but they weren't something that were easily forgotten once you did.

The dolls were horrifying. Once living, they were now only husks. Incapable of love,remorse, or sympathy. Only the will of their master gave them sway.

Perhaps that was why they didn't scare her much anymore. She was like them.  
Almost.  
She still felt love...love for her sister. Kris looked down blindly at the floor as her thoughts turned to her sister. Lindy was the only tether she had left to who she once was. People had always told her that twins held a special bond, although she wasn't sure it was really true. She only really seemed to miss Lindy when they were separated for long periods of time.

For a while Kris stood expressionless in the dark amongst the dolls. She felt like a doll. If she could see herself, she would see that she looked like a doll. Pretty blue eyes, pale moonlit skin, flower petal pink lips, long blonde hair, and a delicate lithe body in an elegant dress.

"Kris!"he called out, raising his lantern above his head. "Why didn't you follow me!? Where are you, slave!?"he yelled in a panicked voice.

She felt something like hope for a moment.  
Could she loose herself down here among the other dolls?  
It was quiet,dark, and cold as the grave in the expansive dungeons. A month ago she would have done anything to escape this place, but now, as the light came closer, she wished she could stay.

"KRIS!?"he screamed in fury at her as the light spilled over her. He charged down the row of living puppets,"You are to answer when I call!"

The slap echoed throughout the dungeon. Kris knelt on the floor, clinging to one of his perfect soldiers for support. "Apologize to me, now."he hissed. She raised her head to him, showing those perfect pools of blue.

Her pale skin was tainted yet again with a rose red mark across her cheek. The image made his head spin with a flurry of opposing emotions. He seethed and trembled as her sweet lips moved with the words but held no feeling when she spoke her apology.  
It hadn't eluded him that she didn't cry anymore.  
She wouldn't scream for him either, which vexed him to no end.  
It got to him that he had almost completely broken her. He liked a good struggle almost as much as he loved the conquest. But he had truly hoped she would have lasted a bit longer..but maybe he was getting ahead of himself.  
There were a few things she hadn't surrendered to him yet.  
His lips curled into a wicked smile.  
Perhaps if he took her completely he could make her scream again..

"GRRRAAAHAHHHH!"he wailed dropping to his knees in intense pain. It felt like needles were being stabbed from behind his eyes. He dropped the lantern and gripped his head as the debilitating pain seared away the thoughts of conquest from his mind. It was no coincidence that this happened any time he had the intention of his pet naked and writhing beneath him as he delved into her leaving his mark in her, claiming her forever.

That little fucker wasn't going to let him have her without a fight.

He glared at her through his red eyes after the pain began to subside. He laughed at her,"He can't protect you forever...now help me up."

Kris stared at him a bewildered moment before she moved.  
Was it true that there were two souls trapped behind those ever changing eyes or was it a cruel illusion to torment her with?  
It didn't matter.  
She detested them both.  
Kris blinked away a contact tear from her watering eyes and helped pick him up. He was heavy, but she took the brunt of his weight on her as she helped him back to the entrance.  
On the way up the stairs she considered the doll-turned-man. He claimed the headaches were the doing of someone else that wanted to protect her.

But that had to be a sick lie...

All the same, she couldn't reconcile herself to the conclusion as it made no sense that he would put himself in such debilitating pain just to make a miserable fool of her.  
But...he _was_ insane.

* * *

He made her help him all the way back to his room which was no simple feat for her. She knew Jackson was back, so she had to assume that this was part of her undeserved punishment.  
Once they were in the bedroom and she closed the door behind them, his lips brushed the rim of her ear when he told her,"Help me to the bed and undress me, Kris. I'll forgive you after that."

She couldn't refuse him.  
He knew she couldn't.  
He was an absolute bastard.

"Yes, master."she replied dutifully.

She helped him flop unceremoniously onto the bed and he sprawled out like a kid about to make a snow angel. He looked at her with his playful red-green eyes. "Kriiiss..take off my shoes first and rub my feet."

He was so obnoxious like this. "Yes, master." She slipped off his dirtied sneakers and socks then slipped them under the bed and did the same for her own flats. Kris sat back down beside him and straightened her skirt out.

"Ahhh...l-like tha-ahhh, right there..."he sighed in pleasure as she worked magic with her delicate hands. She looked so beautiful,even from behind. He loved her tiny waist. She was small enough that he could encircle it with his hands, thumb to thumb and middle finger to middle finger. Lower, her bottom was a perfect heart shape that he could stare at all day.  
She was so damn cute.  
"Mmm...you are very good with your hands..."he purred as she started on his next foot. He thought about how good her hands felt on other parts of his body as well. He grinned devilishly and hooked his leg around her. "Come up here.."he said as he urged her up.

He was strong,stronger than you would think with such a lean frame. Or maybe she was just weak. Kris's dress caught under her and her upper body fell on to his lap. He grunted lightly and she managed to blush at the firmness under her chest.

He smirked down at her,"I'd love it if you stayed like that, but what I really wanted was to stroke my precious pet." He sat up and tangled a hand in her hair,"Unless my precious pet would rather stroke me.."he said, then guided her hand to the stiffened peak between his legs.

Her stomach turned. She had refused one of these 'invitations' before and it ended with her hurt and forced to do it anyway. Why did the other personality only intervene sometimes? Why not when he was beating her or forcing her to do things like this?  
Kris would say neither yes nor no. She'd just do it and not look at him unless he told her to. She squeezed the crotch of his pants, feeling the heated flesh just beneath.

"Mmm..ahhh.."he moaned in satisfaction."Undress me. Get a better look at what you do to me,Kris."he growled huskily and ground against her.

She didn't have a choice.

She did as she was told.

* * *

The dawn eked a ray of light through the heavy curtains. He lay across from Kris and looked at her with his own eyes for the first time in twenty-four hours.

She was beautiful.

She was hurt.

Abused and used in a way she never deserved.

"Kris..?"he said quietly. His hand cupped the angle of her naked shoulder and squeezed tenderly.

That bastard had made him hurt her again.

Tears stung in the corners of his blue eyes. He could only watch what was happening. Even if it was still his body he had very little say in what happened to it anymore. The only influence he had was to cause both inhabitants excruciating pain. He couldn't do it all the time and had to be careful with when he used it.

Kris heard her name called.

_He was back._

She opened her tired eyes and looked to find her blue-eyed Wally staring back at her. Dawn was the only time he showed up, and never for long. Her words were a breathy whisper,"_Oh, it's you._" She cringed and touched her throat, it hurt to speak.

He moved his hand from her shoulder and gently brushed his thumb across her swollen and reddened lips. The foggy memory of how they came to be they way made his stomach turn. He wasn't able to help her.  
"I'm sorry.."his breath hitched and he looked into her eyes with every sincerity,"It's my fault this is happening to you. I never meant for any of this..."his face grew hot and tears rolled off his nose and down his cheek, pooling into a dark wet mark on his pillow case.

"I never should have attacked my brother. I don't know what I was thinking...but it caused all this." He took a shuddering breath and cautiously held her hand. She was looking at him with her sad, tired eyes. He felt utterly worthless under her gaze.

"I didn't know he had this.._thing_..in him.."he tried to fruitlessly explain. "Slappy has always been the better of us, I guess that's why he could handle it. When I came here and he took me in...it felt like I finally found somewhere to belong. Somewhere that I was liked better than him for once. But I ruined everything...like I always do."he lamented.

Her eyes had the faintest amount of spirit still left in them. Wally would like to think it was because his efforts had spared her from the ultimate violation against her, even if he couldn't do shit for everything else.

"He's using my body to do all these horrible things to you and I can't stop him. I can't produce the headaches all the time. If I could, I swear, I would. I'd give him a goddamned aneurism." he said to her and meant it.

"I can feel myself fading away, Kris. Whatever that thing is that was in my brother it transferred to me and now it's consuming everything I am.."he confided feeling less fear for his own eventually non-existence and more for what would happen to her when he was gone.

"Kris..I don't want you to die or let him rape you." he said miserably, unable to hold her gaze. "The dawn is the only time he can't hear or see me, it's the only time when we're completely separate. Get away from him as soon as possible before I'm gone for good. There is a way out of here that you can take, he uses it but won't think you'll use it. It's in the fireplace. If you take the poker and stab it in the very center of the brazier, it acts as a key. Go down the staircase and ride the boat to the other side. Find Slappy. He'll know what to do. He always does...he's better than me like that." He smiled in a painfully sad way. "He'll protect you from this thing out of spite if nothing else,"he looked back up to her as he felt his time coming to a close," I know he will."


	25. Chapter 25

Dennis room was dark aside from the electric glow coming from his computer screen. The almost melodic tapping of keys made her aware that she wasn't alone. Amy's eyes focused on his short profile in his chair. He was working again. Poor Dennis was always working. Amy wondered if having to come get her at the police station had interrupted something..? Was that why he had been so angry with her..?

"Denny...are you still mad at me..?"

Dennis flinched and quickly turned in his chair to her. "Oh, hey. You're awake.."he glanced at the time on his screen to see she had only been out for two hours,"..already?" He closed out a file and signed out of his work program. He hopped out of his chair and came to the bedside."How are you feeling?"

Amy blinked slowly suddenly feeling very heavy,"Hmmm...a little funny."

Dennis gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry, that would be the medicine I gave you. Is there any nausea?"

Amy smiled dreamily at him,"Nope. Just kindaaa...stupid and cozy." Amy gave a long, contented sigh.

"That's good. It will only last for a another hour or so. I'll give you something less intense to take for pain later." Dennis turned down the edge of her favorite blanket to have a look at her shoulder.

Amy stared at him while he checked her bandage."You're so nice to me. Why are you so nice?"

"Am I?"he asked passively, inspecting the amount of fluid collection in the gauze. "I'm just doing things the way I think they should be done, Amy. I don't think I'm nice."

"You always take care of me even when you're super-duper mad at me."

Dennis looked up,"Mad..?" He then remembered how he had treated her hours before. He had definitely been mad.

She felt hazy, but also felt remorse,"I'm sorry. I don't know what I did."

Dennis covered her shoulder again and rubbed the back of his neck. "I guess I was upset because I knew you were hurt again."

Amy whimpered as her eyes watered,"I'm sorry. Did I mess up your work again?"

"No. No, work is fine. I wasn't working." he quickly reassured her.  
As if he would ever choose work over her.  
"Amy, it isn't just that you were hurt..."Dennis grasped for the words so she could understand in her state. He came closer and brushed wily locks of hair from her face. "I was angry with you because you keep taking these terrible risks. I've seen people die from much less. You're going to get yourself killed and it seems like you don't even care who that hurts."

"Who..that hurts...?"she echoed as she tried to process what the words meant in her drugged state.

She wasn't going to remember this, was she?

Dennis looked at her sadly then sat beside her. He gazed at her small rough but feminine hand peeking out from under the blanket,"**_I_** would be very, very hurt if you died."

She stared at him through her dazed eyes. "Very very hurt...?"she echoed.  
Amy suddenly couldn't figure out why he looked so sad. Was he hurt? What were they talking about...?  
She frowned almost comically and reached out a wobbly hand to touch his cheek. "Don't be sad. Sad is sad." She nearly poked him in the eye.

Dennis intercepted her hand gently and laid her arm down across her belly. "It's okay. Don't exacerbate your wound."

Amy yawned and blinked her watery eyes. She felt so tired and was having trouble keeping her eyes open.

"I guess what I mean is that life is scary. I've learned so much about the human condition since the incident with Sara. I find it horrifying how you never know when it's going to end. I see death all the time at the hospital and it's always upsetting. Even when it's and old person who has lived a long life and it's to be expected. I can't help but see someone in our family laying there instead." Dennis paused. "The sad part is that it's an inevitability." He brushed his thumb along her pointer finger. "Amy, I'm not really alive like you are. I don't know when or if I'm going to die." Dennis then placed both his hands on top of hers," If I can't die, then I'd like to enjoy your company as long as I'm allowed to, because people don't come back and living without you is going to hurt me forever."

Amy sat and stared at him for a long dazed pause...then she began to cry. Incapable of restraint or modesty, Amy covered her face with her other hand and began sobbing and hiccuping like an overemotional thirteen year old in the front row at a boy band concert.

"Oh god..D-don't cry! It's okay, everything is okay.."he said patting her hand.

Amy sat up unsteadily and hugged Dennis.

"No wait-Amy! Your injury-!"he protested as she pulled his face against her chest. Dennis felt terrible. He hadn't expected her to cry. "Amy...it's okay."he said and rubbed her arms consolingly.

"Y-y-you d-dun't e-e-even k-know!"Amy finally choked out though the tears and snot. All she could feel at that moment was overwhelming endearment and love for her beloved childhood friend.

"I do, I do..."he lied. No, he didn't know. "It's okay, just lie back down and rest."

"O-o-okay..."she said then flopped backwards.

Dennis' mouth hung open, aghast. She was going to rip her wound back open! He almost scolded her but he just sighed instead and covered her naked chest back up. He reached into his pocket and produced a packet of half-empty tissues. He sat on his knees beside her while cleaned her face. "I'm going to go get some medicine for you and give your parents a call, okay? Try to go back to sleep."

"..okay." Amy sniffled and shut her heavy eyes.

He tucked her in then Dennis left the room. He lay against the wall heavily and let out a tired groan.

The doorbell rang.

Dennis balked at door down the hall. Who hell could it be at this early hour? What now? Without thinking answered the door. "Hello? Can I help you?"

A man in all black, sunglasses, and a big cowboy hat silhouetted by the first light of morning looked down at him.

Dennis stared up at the human wide eyed, realizing that he hadn't disguised himself at all.

"Is..Slappy here?"Dawes asked, sincerely hoping that there weren't more living dummies running around.

Dennis felt a wave of relief wash over him. "OH THANK GOD, I thought you were a normal human for a minute there.."Dennis laughed wearily and opened the door a little wider. "Come in, I'll go get him."

Dawes was insulted, but also pleased that this doofus didn't know not to invite him inside. "Well, thank you."he said then walk right in. He waited politely in the living room for him to retrieve Slappy.

Dennis went down the hall then went down the basement stairs.

Dawes slipped off his glasses and tucked them in his jacket. He looked around at the humble abode, appraising the place his former companion now called home. He took off his hat, then closed his eyes and took a greedy breath.

Ray's scent was everywhere.

Dawes snapped out of his revery as the clatter of footsteps issued from the open basement door commanded his attention.

"Dennis, I don't think I've ever mention to you exactly how stupid you are and how I hate you, have I?"Slappy's voiced hissed from the doorway.

"No, but thanks. It's good know we share an equal opinion of one another."Dennis replied with an air of indifference.

The two creatures appeared at the same time, Dennis regarded Dawes once more with a half wave. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go rest. I've had an exhausting night. It was nice to meet you. "he said before walking further down the hall and disappearing through another doorway.

Slappy walked up to Compton Dawes, who now had been granted unlimited entry to the Kramer residence thanks to Dennis,"Hello, Dawes. What do I owe the pleasure?"

Dawes blue eyes sparkled and he smiled his ridiculously charming smile,"I received the paper work and thought I would deliver..err.."he thought of using the unusual name the girl had jotted down, but he was sure he wouldn't manage to say it with a straight face. "...I thought I would deliver the car."

Slappy sighed and narrowed his eyes,"She officially named it, didn't she?"

"Funny girl."he commented sarcastically.

Slappy massaged his temples,"Thank you, but it was unnecessary for you to go to the trouble."

Dawes took a large manilla envelope out of the other side of his jacket. He felt there were no reasons to hold up any false pretenses between them. "We both know why I came personally. I'd like to see Ray."

"He's asleep."Slappy responded sharply.

"I see."Dawes sighed dramaticly. "A pity.." He handed over the envelope to Slappy. "In there are your licenses, spare key, registration, warranty from my mechanic, and insurance policy. The licenses are fake but passable, the rest are legitimate."

Slappy found himself impressed, but he didn't take Dawes for someone that did things half-assed to begin with. "Thought of everything didn't you?"he said as he accepted the debt-laced parcel.

Dawes smiled,"Only the basics. I'd rather not have things complicated further than they already are."

Slappy tucked it under his arm,"Have there been any new developments in Horrorland?"

Dawes shifted his weight to one leg and started tossing his hat up in the air by it's rim,"A bunch of vamps and wolves were turned yesterday. I think that a few horrors were with them as well. You know, for some reason your brother has had a change of heart. He's burned all the horrors he had collected, so now he has...er..'_Jackson_' I think his name is...,"Dawes guessed, feeling fairly sure that was the assassin's name,"... has been murdering them on sight. It's a damn shame. Horrors are going to go extinct at this rate."

Slappy stood in silence. Why commit genocide against the horrors? This was becoming much more serious. He felt as though the more he knew the less he understood.

"Slappy..?"a soft, husky voice spoke.

Dawes could have snapped his neck with how quickly he followed the voice to the doorway.  
There he was, only yards away.  
The object of his greatest desire.  
Compton Dawes stopped spinning his hat and smiled at the boy in nothing but baggy sweat pants. He had that adorable sleepy look to him that he deeply missed waking up to. Although, he looked older, as if he had been feeding consistently.

Ray's sleep blinders lifted as he truly recognized who it was he was staring at. He stood half naked, in the presence of the one person who upset and confounded him on so many levels he couldn't count them.

"Ray, how are you? Did you receive the things I sent for you?"Compton asked hopefully as he internally debated on whether or not to approach him.

He had only come upstairs to find Slappy, after he woke up alone. Suddenly Ray couldn't move, he couldn't speak, he couldn't do anything except pass between the limbo of shock and panic.

"Yes." Slappy stepped in between the two,"Thank you for those. The glasses and sunscreen have been very helpful."

At that moment he wanted to kick the little dummy out of his way and get closer to Ray, but that sort of disrespect would be quite counter intuitive. Dawes grinned wider. "I'm glad to hear that. I thought they would be." Dawes reached behind his back and produced an older looking circular,flat brimmed hat in his free hand from nowhere. "I also wanted to return this to you, Ray. I thought you might be missing it." Dawes held it out at arms length to him, directly above Slappy.

Ray subconsciously ran a hand through his sleep mussed hair just looking at it. He had worn that hat for a very long time and had always tried to do a good job tending to it. It had been a present from his mother before everything went wrong. That hat was all he had left. He wanted it, he really really did, but he couldn't find the nerve to approach Compton and take it back.  
Ray looked away from them and took a step back through the doorway he just came from.

Slappy didn't think so.  
It would probably be considered quite rude, but there was a part of Slappy's mind that had already marked Ray as belonging to him. Making Ray stronger included facing Dawes.

Slappy pulled on the tenacious demon blood he had drawn from Ray still lingering in him. He walked the short distance to the young watcher in which space he took on his tall mannequin-esque form. Slappy grabbed Ray by his arm. Ray's lovely pale blue eyes stared at him questioning. Slappy narrowed his eyes at him and in a fluid movement grabbed Ray by the back of the neck with his other hand possessively. Ray gave a shocked noise at the roughness, his head tilted back under his grasp and his eyes widened in confusion. "Take it, Ray."he commanded him.

Ray was face to face and chest to chest with the same form Slappy from hours before at The Party House. Slappy was maybe an inch or so taller than him like this, but from the way he was handling him it might have well have been feet. His form's absolutely imposing presence bore down on him. With Slappy's fist at the back on his neck, fingers tangled in the soft strands of angel hair at the very nape, Ray couldn't tell if the demon was being protective or possessive, but there was no mistaking that he was being aggressive. "What..?" Ray breathed in utter confusion. He searched Slappy's green and red rimmed eyes for an explanation but found nothing other than an expectation of obedience.

"Go get your hat."Slappy said nearly nose to nose with Ray.

Ray turned his eyes away from the intense stare. He didn't want to get his hat, he just wanted to go hide in the basement. "..no, Slappy..I don't want to.."he said in just over a whisper. Being this close to Slappy in this form was making his head cloudy and he felt off balance. He gripped Slappy's side, accidentally pulling him in closer. Ray self consciously diverted his focus to feeling the torn silk fabric of Slappy's vest beneath his hand.

Slappy sneered. For a moment, he had an impulse to bite into Ray's exposed neck. Instead, he leaned in closer and spoke low at the corner of his jaw,"_Look at him, Ray._"

Ray reluctantly peered over Slappy's shoulder but wouldn't meet Compton's gaze.

"_He isn't going to hurt you while I'm here._"Slappy whispered then loosed his grip.

Ray missed the closeness that should have made him uncomfortable once Slappy released him. This was all very confusing, but if he had to choose, he would take Slappy over Compton any day.

Dawes bit the inside of his cheek. On the inside he seethed. There was no mistaking the message here; '_Ray is with me now_'. He hated that he could do nothing about it either. Not when he still needed Slappy to depose his insane brother and set things right or while he was in that new form. Slappy whispered something to Ray, then Ray left Slappy and stepped forward. Dawes dark heart fluttered with every step he took closer. Ray paused only a step away and looked him with those blue eyes he missed so much before taking the hat.

"T-thanks.."Ray said nervously as he took his hat back.

Dawes expression softened for Ray,"If there's ever anything you need, you only have to ask."

Ray gave Dawes a fake half smile and held the hat at his side, unintentionally mirroring him."We're both only here to help Slappy. I don't need anything from you anymore."he said then turned around and hurried back down to the basement.

Dawes watched him go with no small amount of sadness and disappointment. Ray had more than a few reasons to hate him, but he wished he knew exactly what they were. He closed his eyes and hung his head when Ray left. After a few silent moments he looked back up to Slappy. He put his armor-like smile back on,"I see that you are recovering your powers nicely."

Slappy nodded. "After I get a little clarity on some things, it won't be too long before I'll be fully restored."

Dawes gave him a skeptical look. "Will that be enough?"

Slappy smirked,"Maybe, if I get ridiculously lucky. But dumb luck has never been a friend of mine, so expect me to call on you again in the future."

Dawes slipped his sunglasses and hat back on and took a step to the door then paused,"For the record, even if he doesn't like it, Ray is a large motivator for helping you." After those parting words Dawes walked out the door into the morning sunlight.


	26. Chapter 26

It was quiet and very dark when Amy woke. She groaned and instantly wished she was still asleep,"I gotta pee..." She pushed her blanket off and found herself still in her lacy black panties,garter belt, and one stocking.

"That's just perfect..."she sighed, remembering the night before. "..I've officially hit a new low." She tenderly cradled her arm before swinging her legs over the edge of Dennis bed.

"Wait.."Amy looked at the dark silent computer. "..where's Dennis?"

She stood up shakily then made her way into the hall. "Hello? Is anybody home?"

No response.

"Where is everybody?"

* * *

"RED MEANS STOP!"Slappy screamed as Action Bastard charged through the four way narrowly missing a parallel oncoming eighteen wheeler.

He had shifted into his Mannequin form but cast the human illusion spell on himself since they would most likely be seen by humans. His foot was braced on the dashboard,one hand gripping the chrome '**oh my god**' bar and the other hand on the ceiling. He looked like a stunned spider with frazzled hair.

"WHICH ONE IS THE BREAK!?"Ray screamed behind the wheel and stamping his foot violently like he was trying to put out a fire.

Slappy looked at Ray wide eyed like a crack addled owl,"WHAAAT!?" Slappy couldn't believe this shit,"THE ONE THAT DOESN'T MAKE US GO FASTER, IDIOT!"

_That was it._

"NOPE!" Ray made a duck face at Slappy and let go of the steering wheel, then leaned back and held his hands up.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"he shrieked as the car jumped the median and into the other lane. Slappy grabbed the wheel and yanked it to the right. Action Bastard jumped the median again and bounced three times,scraping the asphalt and producing sparks, before Slappy steered it into a Pizza Hut parking lot. "THE BREAK IS THE SQUARE ONE!"

Ray looked at Slappy wild eyed and obviously pissed off and started his stomping thing again,"BITCH, I TOLD YOU I COULDN'T DRIVE!"he hollered right at him and then finally found the break. Action Bastard lurched five times before Ray figured out that he had to hold down on it.

"PUT IT IN PARK."Slappy said loudly.

Ray crossed his arms and shook his head,"No. Be happy I found the break, because I'm never touching this thing again."

Slappy growled at him and held out his hands at him like he was about to choke him to death, but just at the last moment just slapped them over his own face and yelled into them. "Goddammit, Ray!"

Ray shrugged and relaxed back against the car seat with his leg still firmly extended to the brake pedal,"I'm not sorry."

Slappy about had enough of Ray's sudden sassy behavior,"Get out of the car."

Ray huffed then opened his car door and started to get out, but as soon as he took his foot off the break Action Bastard started rolling again. "AAAAHHH!"Ray and Slappy screamed in unison.  
"THE BRAKE THE BRAKE!"Slappy yelled pointing at it while Ray stomped wildly. Slappy grabbed Ray's thigh and directed his leg down on the pedal. "PUT THE CAR IN PARK FIRST!"

"HOW?"Ray yelled desperately at Slappy.

"HHHHRRRRRMMMM!"Slappy grit his teeth and glared at him. Slappy turned the shifter roughly to 'P'. "GET OUT OF THE CAR, RAY."

Ray didn't have to be told again. He threw the car door open and jumped out,"I don't need this! I CAN FREAKING FLY..er..hover..er..glide or whatever!"he yelled throwing his hands in the air.

Slappy turned Action Bastard off and got out of the car,"Not everybody can! You need to know how to drive in case of an emergency!"

"We have been doing this for hours! I don't drive, Slappy! I just don't, okay!?"Ray yelled back very upset.

"FINE." Slappy growled,"Then you can fly back home."

Ray stuffed his hands in his jeans pockets, looked at the ground and shrugged. "That's fine by me!"he said then turned and started to walk away briskly.

Slappy sighed then pinched the bridge of his nose,"Come back, Ray. I didn't mean it."

Ray just kept walking. It was already freezing outside and now that it was after midnight it was only going to get colder. Ray pulled the over sized jacket he had borrowed from Mr. Kramer closer to him.

He TOLD him he couldn't drive. He didn't WANT to learn. He had no right to get so mad at him. He actually _hated_ cars.

"Ray."

He sped up as he heard the footsteps approaching.

"RAY."

Ray flipped up the fleece lined hoodie and bowed his head.

Slappy grabbed Ray by the shoulder and spun him around."Ray."

He looked away from Slappy.

"Come back to the car."

"I hate cars.."Ray mumbled.

Slappy took a deep calming breath,"Why?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

Slappy groaned. So, he had another emotional scar? What could it possibly be this time..? Slappy sneered in exasperation,"How screwed up are you, anyway?"

Ray's jaw dropped, he looked up at Slappy with disgust and hurt. He turned back around and walked away even faster.

Slappy cringed internally. He couldn't believe he just blurted that out."Wait..._ stop_..." Slappy ran after him. He reached out and wrapped his long arms around Ray from behind. He held him tightly in an unintended, but not entirely unwelcome embrace.

Ray struggled weakly for a moment then just stood there in silence. He didn't have anything to say to Slappy.

Slappy sighed,"It isn't fair."

"What? Life?"Ray snapped bitterly.

"No. You.." Slappy dropped his forehead onto Ray's shoulder. "What you are. Your kind are a hybrid that makes everyone eventually love you...it's one of the things that makes you so dangerous."

Ray couldn't tell if the implication of that statement made his blood run cold or hot, only that it had a significant effect. He was still so confused about what had happened earlier that morning when Dawes had been at the house. The way Slappy had been so rough..  
That thought made his blood warm of it's own rare accord. Ray swallowed dryly,"What is that supposed the mean?"

Slappy lifted his head and spoke at the cup of Ray's ear,"I'm not in love with you, Ray. I am overly fond of you, though. It's quite bothersome. It's undermining my usual reactions."

Ray pouted and turned his head away,"Sorry to be bothersome."

Slappy pulled Ray against him tighter,"You know that isn't what I meant."

Now Ray felt stupid,"I don't know what you meant."he lied.

Slappy's lips pulled into a thin line. "Let's not make more of this than there is, Ray."

_What was there..?_

Ray didn't feel like living with ambiguity. He shifted, turning around in Slappy's arms until they were face to face.

Slappy's human face was handsome, although not all that different from before. He stared back at him hard with his unique dark blue eyes. Ray faintly smirked at the unease or anticipation that flickered in their depths. Ray really was only about an inch shorter than Slappy this way, which made it all the easier to pull in close and place a soft open mouthed kiss on his bottom lip.  
Ray waited to see what his reaction would be.

Slappy shut his eyes and furrowed his brow hard. "Goddammit, Ray..."Slappy breathed in and could taste him on his lips. Good god he didn't need this. He couldn't handle being attracted to both of them. "You're cheating.."

Ray chuckled with satisfaction. He ran his nails up Slappy's back and dug them in at his shoulder blades and left no space between their bodies. "Goddammit, Slappy.."he whispered and grinned devilishly against his chin, with a faint glint of silver to his teeth. "You're getting hard.."

Slappy was humiliated.

He growled and responded in the only way he could at that moment. He grabbed a fistful of Ray's blonde hair and drew him into a crushing kiss he didn't realize he knew how to give. Ray's response was to claw into his back and open his mouth to deepen the kiss. Slappy moaned and ground his hips roughly against Ray's that met his with equal desire.

Forcing himself out of the kiss Slappy panted and hung his head in defeat on Ray's shoulder. "I swear Ray, if you don't cut this shit out I'm going to bend you over the hood of that car and fuck you until you can't walk straight..."Slappy growled through bared teeth against his throat.

"The car..."Ray said breathlessly.

Slappy gripped his ass and forced him against his own restrained hardness,"Yes.."

"No, the car,Slappy-"Ray pinched his chin and turned his head to peek behind them. "..Someone is stealing it."Ray said flatly.

"What!?"Slappy barked.

"HAHA! LATER FAGGOTS!"two baggy clothed youths taunted them, then jumped in the car and flipped them off.

"FUCK!"Slappy and Ray parted abruptly and bolted after the car-jackers as they sped off, tires screeching.

"Goddammit Ray! This is your fault!"Slappy yelled running beside him into the road.

"HOW IS IT MY FAULT!?"Ray yelled back and jumped a piece of a blown-out tire.

"YOU WERE ABUSING YOUR SEX APPEAL AND DISTRACTING ME!"

How annoying. Ray frowned at Slappy,"Is that seriously one of my abilities or are you just making something up because you're embarrassed about being attracted to me?"

"BOTH!"he shouted in full sprint.

Ray narrowed his eyes at him in annoyance, then shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Wait, why am I running?" Ray asked himself then kicked off from the ground hard, sending loose asphalt scattering in all directions behind him as his soared in an accelerated arch. Ray landed hard on the hood of Action Bastard, scaring the hell out of the two inside.

"PULL OVER!"Ray roared at them with burning red eyes and silver fangs.

"IT'S A DEMON!"the driver screamed, swerving recklessly between the mostly empty late night roads.

Ray was thrown off balance when they hit the curb and fell against the windshield. "Are you trying to get yourselves killed!? PULLOVER!"he shrieked, holding tightly to the car antenna. He could see Slappy catching up from behind but noticed his expression change from rage to panic. Ray looked in the direction Slappy was looking and cried out, covering his eyes.

"TRUUUUUCK!"the rider screamed then bailed out of the passenger side door.

The eighteen wheeler blared it's horn and Ray cringed from the intensity of the headlights. Blinded and stunned he found himself unable to get off the hood.

Slappy had a sudden, inspired burst of speed and caught up with the car. He punched the drivers side window in and the driver out cold. He quickly wrent the wheel to the right sending them careening back into the correct lane. Ray started to roll off of the hood and Slappy grabbed him by his jacket with is left hand, then onto Action Bastard's frame with his right one. He dug his feet into the ground as hard as he could. "HOLD ON, RAY!"he called to him as the car began to drift and weave all over the road without the benefit of direction as Slappy forced it to slow and eventually stop.

Action Bastard stilled on the edge of lane pointing in the wrong direction, then stalled out and grumbled before falling silent.

Slappy panted, his iron grip on frame between the drivers side door and the windshield was bent into finger grooves from the sheer force.

"Slappy..you can let go."Ray said and cautiously cupped his hand to his trembling fist tangled in his jacket.

Slappy took a calming breath and made himself release Ray then the car. "Are you okay?"

Ray tapped a knuckle on the windshield,"Better than that guy inside."

"Oh god-dangit!"Slappy raged,"He's bleeding all over the leather!" He reached in through the shattered window and yanked the unconscious young man from the car , tossing him into grassy median. Slappy produced a white handkerchief from his pocket and tossed it over the small pool of blood.

Ray slid off the hot hood and straightened himself out.

Slappy was half inside the car cleaning up the blood and Ray couldn't help but laugh.

"What's so funny?"Slappy grouched from inside the car, annoyed at Ray's ill placed mirth. His eyes widened when he was gently bumped from behind and felt hands grasp either side of his hips and the press of a groin suggestively against his ass.

"Isn't this what you said you were going to do to me?"he purred jokingly.

"I swear to god, Ray.."Slappy hissed feeling momentarily disoriented.

Ray gently bumped against him once more then let go and leaned on the side of the car. "Sorry, I couldn't resist."

Slappy slipped out of the window then flung the blood soaked handkerchief indiscriminately. He glared at Ray,"Yes you can, you just don't want to."

Ray grinned mischievously and ran a hand through his hair.

"Bastard..you aren't as innocent as you put on." Slappy sighed and took Amy's cracked cell phone from his other slack pocket along with a business card.

"Who are you calling?"Ray asked with a quirked brow.

"Road side assistance."he responded impassively.

Ray nodded and mouthed the word,"_Oh_".

While Slappy was on the phone the car thief woke up. He was dazed at first then looked at Ray in utter horror. Ray grimaced at him, then kicked crumbled concrete by the roadside at him. "Fuck off kid. Get outta here before we call the police."he growled.

The kid took off like a rocket down the road.

Slappy stepped up beside Ray as he turned the phone off. "Sure you didn't want a snack?"

"That guy shit himself, so no."

Slappy laughed darkly then thought about the implications of that. "Did he do it before or after I got him out of the car?"

"I'd guess after, maybe just now." Ray softly chuckled and slipped his cold hands in his pants pockets. "Don't worry."

Slappy took the car keys to the back of the car and opened Action Bastard's hatchback. He laid down in the spacious cargo room,leaving his legs to dangle off the bumper. "I hate people.."

Ray sat down beside him. "So, we wait?"

Slappy covered his eyes with the crook of his elbow,"Maybe half an hour."

Ray smiled. He crawled on top of Slappy, straddling him. "What do you want to do while we wait?"

"Not what you're thinking."he scoffed.

Ray sat up on his lap,"Suddenly a mind reader, are we?"

Slappy bit back a moan,"You're an open book.." Slappy moved his arm and gave him and unamused look. "Don't tell Amy."

Ray tilted his head,"About the car or the kiss?"

Slappy groaned and covered his face with his hands. "Both."

Ray moved off of him and sat down indian style beside him. He barely had enough headroom to sit up straight. "Didn't she just give us a talking to about being honest with her?"

"Do you really want to tell her we wrecked her car withing hours of receiving it?"Slappy asked grimly.

Ray thought about it. "Never tell Amy. Got it."

They both sighed at the same time. The rest of the wait they sat quietly with only the sound of the blinking yellow traffic light to keep a hypnotic sort of tempo that was only interrupted by the infrequent late night driver until the tow truck arrived.

* * *

Slappy decided Ray should sleep alone by time they got home. After he was in the basement and Slappy had washed his dirtied hands, he went to Amy's bedroom.

He tiredly undressed. Slappy wondered if maybe he should just stay in bed until the car was fixed again, since every time he had gone outside recently it had ended poorly. Down to his boxer briefs, he turned down the comforter on his side of the bed and crawled in beside Amy.

"Slappy...?"Amy said sleepily.

"Hmm..?"he responded settling in.

"Where were you..? I woke up earlier and you and Ray were gone. I had to take a shower by myself."

"You need me so you can take a shower now?"he asked with a quirked brow, intrigued.

"It would have been nice to have someone to hold the garbage bag over my shoulder in the shower."

"So sorry."Slappy said deeply sarcastic.

He was such a smart ass...she smiled. Amy could tell from the weight in the bed that he had taken on his big form again. "Is everything okay?"

Slappy paused at the stupid question. "My brother is out to kill me and enslave all monsters so he can make an army to wipe out all humans, but other than that everything is fine."

Amy giggled at his serious response. "Are you going to stay in this form?"

"No..I'll probably change back by time I wake."he said and passed a hand through his human illusion's hair.

Amy turned on her left side and scooted in closer to him under the covers. "Lift your arm."

Slappy grumbled. What the hell did she want? He just wanted to sleep...

Slappy lifted up his right arm and perked up a bit more when she nestled in at his side, resting her soft warm cheek on his shoulder and draped her right arm across his chest.

Amy felt her heart jump. "Woah...you're squishy. How are you doing that?"

His arm came down of it's own accord and cradled her against him. "It's an illusion."

She rested her weight on him. "Feels real."

"It'd be a shitty illusion if it didn't." Like this, it was a different experience interacting with her. She was much smaller than him. He contented himself in the warm contrast of Amy's softness against his own body. He sighed staring at the ceiling. A thought occurred to him and he pulled down the comforter from her shoulder to get a look at her bandage. "How is it?"

Amy opened her drowsy eyes and looked at his hand over the mat of gauze and medical tape."I found Dennis and he refreshed the bandage and gave me another pill. Now, it's just a dull ache if I don't poke it or over extend my arm."

"I didn't mean to let that happen to you."he said quietly as if he were worried someone might hear.

She liked him like this. It made his voice sound deeper and it felt nice to feel small against him instead of the other way around. "Don't worry about it. Just do me a favor and stop saving me. It's embarrassing. If you get me too used to it, then what am I going to do when you aren't able to be there?"

_Talk about ungrateful..._

"Die, most likely."he said deadpan.

Amy smiled against his chest and draped her thigh on top of his,"Don't tell anybody, but I like you better as a bad guy than a hero."

_Oh god, she was so warm..._

"So you like it when I'm bad?"he murmured and snaked his left arm under the blanket intending to push her invading thigh off and touched it to find it bare.

_Goddammit he should have slept with Ray.._

"I like it how you're honest. There are a lot of people out there that go around acting like knights in shining armor, but it's all for show. They're actually assholes."she said as her hand drifted lower down his abdomen. "You're upfront about being an asshole."

_Aww, fuck._ _She better stop that or he was going to do something he'd regret._

He already knew the second and third part of her statement, but no one had ever called him honest before. "Thanks, Amy. Go to sleep."

"I'm still a little loopy from the pain pills..."she sighed and flicked her thumb over his fuzzy indention of a belly button.

He shifted under the sheets and turned on his right side, facing her.

Amy made a disappointed noise at the loss of contact,"What's wrong?"

He lifted the blanket up to his broad shoulder and looked down into the empty space that it made between them. She was only in underwear and knee socks. Amy had to be drugged, otherwise she would never be so comfortable with him like that.

He swallowed hard. "Nothing."he said casually then pressed his face in his pillow. He wanted to scream.

_Goddammit._

Amy sat up on her left arm. She couldn't see him,but she could feel him. It hurt a to move, but she reached over and found his shoulder,"Slappy?"  
She felt him shift and his eyes on her. She leaned in close until their noses touched. She hesitated a moment and Slappy held perfectly still under her hand. "_Good night kiss_,"she whispered before gently pressing her lips to his, surprised to find them soft. She pulled away blushing and settled back down on her side of the bed. "Good night."

He didn't know what he had done to bring all this affection upon him from both his companions, but whatever it was he swore he'd never do it again. Slappy turned onto his other side away from Amy and crossed his legs.

He hadn't wanted to sleep anyway.


	27. Chapter 27

Dennis walked into the kitchen. "Good morning, Slappy." He peered up at the wall clock that read 9:07am. "You're up early...I think."

Slappy sat in his usual dummy form at the kitchen counter in the stool that he had decided was his. "Couldn't sleep."he mumbled as he turned the page in a road atlas, bouncing a pink highlighter between his fingers.

Dennis walked up his step-stool and filled a small blue glass cup with water. "What are you doing with that atlas?"

"None of you business." he responded curtly with a tiny glance at him.

Dennis wondered why he bothered then sipped his water.

Slappy sat up straight in his seat and stared at him intensely. "Wait. What are you doing?"

Dennis looked back at him, alarmed by the alarm in Slappy's voice. "What? Nothing..?"

Slappy pointed at Dennis then at the sink. "That. What you just did. What the hell was that?"

Dennis looked at the cup, then back at Slappy. "I get thirsty. What? Don't you?"

"I can only drink alcohol."Slappy said in a lower flat register.

Dennis rolled his eyes,"Aren't you a snob?"

"No, idiot. Where the hell does it go?"he snapped.

"I don't know."he shrugged, puzzled by Slappy's sudden interest. "It just...goes. Then I don't feel thirsty anymore."

_How the hell could he drink water..?_  
Slappy blinked slow, a look of deep thought etched on his face.  
_Was Dennis seriously one of those other things?_  
"What else can you imbibe?"

"Fancy words..."Dennis said jokingly, sounding a lot like his old self before Sara had helped him with his dialect. He lifted his brow then listed on his fingers," Umm..honey...and I tried milk once, but it wasn't my thing."

Slappy's mouth hung slightly open as he stared narrow eyed and incredulous at Dennis.  
_Seriously?  
_He sighed theatrically then threw his hands in the air and looked back down to his map of Boston,"Why not!? There are more things in heaven and earth-blah blah blah..I don't care..."

"I take it you can't?"he asked as he descended his step-stool.

"Only alcohol."

"Ah...well, it's not a big deal."he said flippantly and walked to the doorway.

Slappy glared at him sideways from his atlas,"The way you say that sounds like when rich people say that having money is no big deal, but have no idea what it's like to be poor."

Dennis made a fake sympathetic face at him,"Poor Slappy.."

Slappy narrowed his eyes. "Go fuck yourself, Dennis."

Dennis sighed and started walking back to his room,"Always a pleasure talking with you, Slappy.."

Slappy grumbled then tried to find the highway he had been tracing in the previous page.

"Oh hey,"Dennis said popping back around the door frame again,"..the family is going to be home in an hour or so. You may want to go hide out in the basement before they get here. Just giving you fair warning."he said then went to his room.

Slappy was confused. What was going to happen? Were they going to try to throw him out or something? Slappy sneered and shrugged.

_Whatever._

* * *

Slappy should have listened.

Two hours later, he sat in awkward silence as the hurricane of feminine fury raged around him and his pink marker.

"AMY BEATRICE KRAMER DON'T YOU TAKE THAT TONE WITH ME!"Mrs. Kramer screeched at her daughter, her fists on hips and chin forward.

Amy retaliated waving her arms in the air like a distressed muppet."WHAT!? THIS TONE!? THE SAME ONE YOUR USING ON ME!?"

"I LOST THAT SCHOLARSHIP BECAUSE OF YOU!"Sara shrieked, her face turning a brilliant shade of red.

Amy stomped like an angry toddler with her fists at her side,"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT, SARA! YOU SAID IT'D BE A WEEK BEFORE THEY ANNOUNCED A WINNER!"

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING ABOUT REAL LIFE, AMY! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US!?"Sara screamed.

Mrs. Kramer held her hands out open-palmed as if begging,"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW HUMILIATING IT WAS TO BE APPROACHED BY THE POLICE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DEAN OF ADMISSIONS DINNER PARTY!?"she yelled in anguish.

Sara began bawling into her hands,"I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO GO BACK THERE EVER AGAIN! I'M RUINED!"

Amy puffed out her cheeks and screamed closed mouth then shrieked,"GIMME A BREAK! YOU'VE GOT SCHOOL OFFERS AND SCHOLARSHIPS CRAWLING IN AND OUT OF YOUR ASS LIKE PIN WORMS!"

Slappy grimaced. What happened to the cute girl he was in bed with last night? He wished he could just slip away, but had a feeling any movement would provoke the animals to attack.

Amy's mother looked disgusted,"THAT IS VILE! GO WASH YOUR DIRTY MOUTH OUT WITH SOAP!"

"I WANTED TO GO TO THAT SCHOOL, AMY! I NEEDED THE CONNECTIONS EVEN IF I DIDN'T GET IN, BUT NOW I CAN JUST FORGET ABOUT IT! YOU RUIN EVERYTHING!"Sara sobbed, hugging herself then ran dramatically out of the kitchen, wailing.

Amy's mother glared at her with venom and hatred one should never feel for their child, then jabbed a finger at her,"Go apologized to your sister!"

Amy slapped her mother's hand away,"NO! YOU'RE BOTH OVER REACTING!"

Mrs. Kramer's eyes flew open and her pupils dilated, then she raised a threatening hand to Amy.

A fraction of surprise shot through Amy, but a rush of stubbornness supported her as her eyes hardened like stone and she stood braced, daring her mother to follow through.

The two women stood in trembling, tense rage and contempt for the person on the other side of their gulf of distrust and misunderstanding.

"Amy, just go apologize to Sara."

Amy's neck vertebrae popped loudly from sheer force when she turned her head. "WHAT!?"

Slappy glanced up from his atlas,"Did I stutter?"he said seemingly unaffected.

"ARE YOU SHITTING ME!? I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! THEY ARE BOTH FREAKING OUT OVER NOTHING! HOW COULD YOU TAKE THEIR SIDE!?"

Slappy furrowed his brows at her,"You're being a noisy brat, Amy. Now, salvage what dignity you have left and go apologize."

"RAAAAAAAHHHH!"she screamed then slapped his atlas off the counter violently. It hit the wall and flutter and flapped to the floor. Amy glared at him wild eyed.

Slappy didn't flinch. His glassy eyes held cold and steady as she death glared him. He tapped his pen on the counter slowly. A tap accentuated every long second until Slappy's patience ran thin and he narrowed his eyes at her,"What are you waiting for?"he hissed low and dangerous.

Amy tensed up like a coiled snake and seethed at him,"FINE!"she roared then stormed out of the kitchen past her mother, punching the refrigerator as she exited.

Amy's mother stared at him. Her face was still red and her fists were still clenched tight, even her gait when she crossed the room the to pick up the atlas was stiff. She held out the book to him,"Thank you."

He nodded to her and accepted the book,"You are welcome." He turned back to the counter and found the page he had left off at.

She crossed her arms and huffed,"I don't know what's wrong with h-"

"I'm taking her with me."Slappy said firmly cutting Mrs. Kramer off in mid-sentence. "We're taking a trip to Boston starting tomorrow. I hope you can make preparations in that time for her school attendance."

"She was suspended with the possibility of expulsion after the school was contacted about the Party House fiasco..." Mrs. Kramer hiccuped and wiped away non-existent tears. "I've never been so embarrassed!"

"Well, that's good. I'm very busy so-"Slappy was cut off by screaming from down the hall. Both he and Amy's mother looked in that direction.

"I'M SO SORRY YOU'RE SUCH AN EMOTIONALLY INSECURE CUNT, YOU STUPID BITCH!"

"GET OUT OF MY ROOM YOU SOCIETAL RETARD! THERE'S A REASON NOBODY NORMAL LIKES YOU,AMY!"

"FUCK NORMAL PEOPLE!"

"GO TO HELL!"

"Sara! Amy! Stop this!" Dennis yelled desperately, standing between the two girls.

"IF YOU THINK BEING NORMAL IS GOING TO MAKE YOU HAPPY, THEN YOU'RE BIGGEST FOOL ON THE PLANET! ALL YOU'RE DOING IS SETTING YOURSELF FOR DISAPPOINTMENT AND EVEN IF YOU ACHIEVE THIS FABLED "_NORMALITY_", ALL THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IS THAT YOU'LL TURN INTO A SELF RIGHTEOUS INTOLERABLE FUCK FACE!"Amy screeched in a passionate rage.

Sara knocked Dennis out of the way then pulled back and slapped Amy hard across the face. "GET OUT OF MY ROOM YOU PUPPET'S WHORE!"

Amy jumped on Sara and started pulling her dark, silky hair,"YOU'RE A CUM DUMPSTER WITHOUT A PERSONALITY!"

"AMY STOP!"Dennis screamed and tried to pull her off.

Sara screamed and scratched Amy's bruised neck with her perfectly manicured nails,"YOU'RE A WASTE OF A HUMAN BEING!"

"FUCK HUMANS! HUMANS SUCK AS MUCH AS YOU SUCK DICK!"Amy screamed as she was torn off of her squealing sister.

"HOLY SHIT!"Dennis exclaimed in shock as he saw Slappy in his Mannequin form for the first time.

Amy kicked and screamed as she was thrown over a broad shoulder and hefted out of the room. "PUT ME DOWN!"

"YOU HAD ONE JOB, AMY."he growled as he kicked open the side door in the sitting room. He marched across the yard and jumped a neighboring fence.

"What are you doing!?"she yelled and tried to look but lost the chance as she was suddenly thrown in the air and came down with a shocking,cold splash.

"Cool down, then you can come home!"Slappy yelled at her as she splashed around in the neighbor's algae-green pool like a spastic walrus, then he turned around and hopped the fence.

Dennis, Mrs. Kramer, Jed, and Sara all were waiting wide eyed at the door when he was back on the other side.

"What did you do with her?"Dennis asked, still stunned but worried.

"I threw her in the pool."he said dryly.

"But they never clean that pool! Her wound will get infected!"Dennis yelled. He ran across the lawn to the wooden fence and clamored trying to find a foot hold to climb it.

Slappy didn't care. What did Margo's father call her...'_sturdy_'? She'd be fine.

Jed looked to his mother,"Mom, did Amy ever learn how to swim?"

"No."she sighed and walked back inside.

Slappy turned around, ran, and jumped the fence. "GODDAMMIT AMY!"

* * *

Amy sniffled and held the towel up to cover her chest as Dennis applied the fresh dressing after she and Slappy showered off. "I thought I told you to stop saving me."she grumbled in an upset but subdued way to Slappy.

"Shut up, Amy." he grumbled back,small again and wrapped in fluffy red towels.

"Both of you shut up."Dennis snapped. "You're all a bunch of hot heads..."he said as a sideways passive-aggressive jab at Sara who sat in his desk chair, checking her mail. She sat stiffly and had her hair up in a tight ballerina bun.

"Amy, how should I wash the vest you made? I'm out of clothes."Slappy asked, muffled by the big towels.

"It's dry clean only."she lamented.

"You can borrow some of mine, Slappy."Dennis sighed then looked over at Sara. "Sara, could you please pass that pack of antibiotics by your hand to me?"he asked with obvious softened affection in his voice.

Sara stood up roughly then back handed the box to the floor at his feet,"Get it yourself, stupid doll."she hissed smartly then left quickly.

Amy looked at the doorway with shock and disgust. Did she just...?

Dennis stood stunned for a moment. He blinked a few times then slowly knelt down and picked up the box off the floor. He held it a second before he walked over to his desk and took a water bottle out of the bottom drawer that he had written 'Amy's' on.

"She's such a bitch."Amy growled.

"Just stop, Amy. Please..."Dennis whispered sadly looking down and handed her the water bottle.

Amy knew how much he cared about Sara, though she had no idea why. All she ever did was boss him around and have him buy her things. "I'm sorry, Denny."she said then opened the bottle.

"It's okay."he said quietly as he popped the large yellow pill out of the bubble pack. He placed it in her palm,"Take one a day, at the same time of day preferably, for seven days, okay? Don't skip or you could get really sick."

Amy smiled sympathetically at him and then looked at the pill in her hand,"What would I do without you,Denny?"

"Die, most likely."he joked with a half heart.

Amy smirked then took the pill.

"Can I get those clothes now?"Slappy said sounding more annoyed than usual.

"Oh, yeah."Dennis said suddenly remembering Slappy was still there. He walked over to his skinny chest of drawers in the corner. "Preference on underwear?"

"I'm not wearing your underwear."Slappy said flatly.

"You have been."Dennis pointed out as he fished out a pair of balled up black socks.

"I'm not wearing your underwear anymore."he corrected.

"Commando it is.."Dennis said bemused, then brought him the clothes.

Slappy glanced at the clothes in Dennis' hands then back up at him,"Go to the bathroom with me."

Dennis stared at him flatly. "No thank you."

"Carry the clothes for me. I'm not taking these towels off with Amy in the room."

Dennis quirked his brow."Didn't you just take a shower together?"

"We took turns."he said deadpan. Couldn't the moron take a hint that he wanted to talk to him alone?

"I can just leave the room ya' know."Amy said feeling insulted. "God, it isn't like you've got an actual gender anyway."Amy huffed. "Freaking prude..."she pouted and tightened her towel around her top.

Slappy hopped off the bed and held the mass of towels around him as he left Dennis' room.

Dennis stared at Amy as if expecting an answer to Slappy's odd request.

Amy shrugged.

Dennis sighed and shook his head,"I'll be back..",he said then followed Slappy.

When they were gone she looked around the quiet room and picked at the fuzzies on her orange towel. After a minute or two she wondered aloud,"Am I supposed to stay in here?"

* * *

"I'd like it if you would accompany us on our trip."Slappy said to Dennis, getting right to the point.

"Me? Why? You hate me."he asked truly perplexed.

"True." he stated as he slipped on the slightly loose bluejeans. "Amy is very accident prone. I need a vet."

"You mean _physician_."Dennis corrected him while he stared at the bathroom door.

Slappy pulled the white t-shirt over his head. "Same thing."

Dennis frowned and his eye twitched,"No...they're not."

"Will you come?"he asked, slipping into the black wool sweater.

Dennis thought about it. He would worry about Amy, but he had work and had to study for school. _Although..maybe if..._"Can you tell me how you did that thing earlier?"

Slappy glanced back at Dennis as he dried up the flood Amy had left on the floor."Oh. Becoming taller? I don't think it would work for you."

"I'd really like to try. You know how hard it is being this short."he sighed.

"Ever try drinking blood?"he smirked.

Dennis made to look back over his shoulder,but stopped."What? NO!"he yelled out in disgust.

"Well, that's a problem then."he said shrugging.

Dennis looked at the little space between the bottom of the door and the floor. It was gross, but if it could make him look more like a normal human he would try anything. "I...guess...I could.."

"It might turn you into a demon."Slappy clarified quickly before hanging the wet red towel on the handle in the shower.

"What?" Dennis groaned and face palmed. "Why do these things always have to be 'monkey paw' situations?"

"To keep life interesting."Slappy cruelly joked.

Dennis sneered at his feet,"Life isn't interesting when it's like that, it's just a pretty bitch."

Slappy was honestly impressed with the animosity in Dennis voice,"Talking about Sara are we?"

Dennis quickly turned and glared at Slappy,"DON'T."

Slappy stared back at him with disinterest."Well. Thank you for the clothes. I'll return them."he said safely slipping on the socks now that the floor was dry.

"Just..keep em. Don't worry about it."Dennis said feeling dejected. "Amy made them. She'd probably rather you have them anyway.."

Slappy stared at Dennis, appraising him. "You know that you still belong to Amy, right?"

"Huh..?"Dennis asked dumbly.

"The words she spoke to wake me accidentally woke you too. All the same, you were bound to her then and still are."

"What...what does that mean exactly?"

"It means the only reason you're still able to walk, talk, and _cry yourself to sleep_ or whatever, is because of your bond with her."

Dennis sneered at him. "What's your point, Slappy?"

"You're serving the wrong master, idiot. Amy actually cares about you unlike princess pissy pants."

Dennis clenched his fists. "What would you know about caring about anyone besides yourself?"

Slappy should have know better than to try persuading him with logic. "Never mind. Enjoy your doomed romance." He would just have to keep Amy on a short leash.

Dennis crossed his arms and kicked at the floor mat. "Doesn't that mean you're still bound to her as well?"

Slappy shook his head,"It's complicated."

Dennis opened the door and Slappy walked out past him without even a thank you. Dennis wasn't all that surprised. He followed him out, back into the hall. "So who would I be receiving the blood from?"

Slappy stopped and looked at Dennis seriously,"You really want to take the risk?"

Dennis slipped his hands in his khaki pockets,"Yeah. I suppose I do."

Giving Dennis some of Ray's blood was damned risky. It could just turn him into monster or even worse, it could actually work. There was really no telling, but it would definitely be amusing whatever the outcome.  
_Especially if he was one of those things._  
Slappy's red lips seemed to pull into a broad smile. "Okay. Come with me."

* * *

"What are you doing in my room?" Amy asked as she shifted uncomfortably on her feet in the doorway. She wanted to change into some dry clothes and out of her wet towel, but her mother was going through her drawers.

"Your friend down stairs said you were going on a trip."Mrs. Kramer said as she took a stack of nicely folded shirts out and set them in a large suitcase on her daughters bed.

Amy looked to the big black rectangle suitcase then back to her mother,"Okay...I can do it for myself." Amy said as her mother produced a duffel bag from the floor and took it to her dresser. "I'm only going for the weekend. I'm not going to need all that much..."

Mrs. Kramer opened Amy's underwear drawer and started dropping balled up pairs of underwear into the mesh bag one after the other. "You never know."

"I seriously got this."she said and crossed the room to her dresser and took the bag from her mother. Her mother stared at her with a queer expression. It wasn't angry, sad, or blank either...it just..was a look.

"Alright. Well, you were expelled from school so,"Amy's mother put on a straight smile and patted her on the shoulder,"Enjoy your trip."

She watched her mother leave, feeling an odd turning in her stomach. After she was gone, Amy closed her door and locked it. "That was weir-"she rethought her words,"...unsettling."

Amy lingered at the door a moment and felt the notched wooden door frame. Each groove meant something, a memory of some event, big or small, that had occurred in this room where she had resided from the crib till that very moment.

Amy didn't have perfect finger nails, but they were dense and strong. She jammed her thumbnail into an empty, smooth area on the frame at her eye level and sawed it until a proper groove was made. She'd had fights with her sister and mother before, but there was something significant about today.  
She could feel it in her bones.  
Something she would never let herself forget.

Satisfied she turned away in time to hear a rasp at the door.

"I'm getting dressed-"she said to the door.

"It's Slappy, let me in."he said hurriedly.

Amy scrunched up her nose,"Double standard, much? You can wait in the hall."

"Just open the damn door."

Amy 'hurmed' then sighed and relented,"Fine...get in here, ya' bossy accent piece..."

Slappy stepped in after the door was fully open then walked over to the bed and hopped onto it.

Amy closed and locked the door again then looked at him,"So what's up?"

"Why are you packing so much? We're only going to be gone for the weekend."he asked looking at the case and duffel bag.

Amy looked at the half-packed bags on her bed stoically,"You never know.."  
Amy stared at them a moment then tossed her towel over Slappy's head and smiled,"You look good in orange."

"I prefer black."he said pulling it off.

Amy grabbed her boobs and crossed her legs,"AH! Wait! Let me get dressed first ya perv!"she yelped the hurried to her dresser.

Slappy grunted with it already half-way off,"But it's cold and wet."

"Leave it on or I'll introduce you to my antique kerosene collection and get you plenty warm!"she threatened as she slipped on a pair of the last remaining underwear in her drawer.

He peeked out from under the towel while her back was turned and smirked,"If you insist."

Amy didn't bother with a bra, she just stepped into two camisoles and pulled them up her body so she wouldn't have to bother her right arm. She had used it enough today and it was hella sore.  
She situated the camis in an attractive layered look. Having small breasts wasn't all bad, she could get away without wearing a bra if she wanted to. She toed open her bottom drawer and fished out a pair of jeans with them. "Hey, whatever happened with Action Bastard? Are we even going to be able to leave tomorrow?"

Slappy couldn't think of a good lie, since he still hadn't heard back from Dawes' mechanic on how bad the damage was. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Geeze! And after I filed all that paperwork and crap. That guy sucks."Amy said as she slipped on the jeans and buttoned them.

"He's useful."Slappy said as he moved the towel back over his eyes before she turned around.

Amy sat down on the bed beside Slappy,took the towel off his head, and tossed it to the floor. "If you say so..."

He looked up at her,"Was that common place? The three way cat fight?"

Amy's expression turned melancholy,"Nah, not really. Mom usually never yells, sure she has plenty of crap to say, but..not so loudly.."Amy began picking at an uneven fingernail,"I guess they just reached a tipping point."

Slappy watched her mutilate her nail into a more even shape,"What happened to you? You weren't anything like this when we first met. Why the big change?"

Amy wasn't sure how to respond but if she thought about it,"I don't know..puberty I guess. Maybe it was because of you?"

Slappy rolled his eyes,"Don't blame it on me."

Amy laughed weakly,"I'm not...I'm just saying that after you everything changed." Amy peeled away a piece from the tip of her finger nail then flicked it to the floor. "My family was the same for the most part, plus one of course,"she said referring to Dennis," but I guess it was just me that changed."

"Why?"

"You made me aware that there was an entire other world out there. One where every rule about the universe I had been taught suddenly didn't apply anymore. I guess it made me wonder if all the bullshit rules society expected people to follow were just that. Bullshit. " Amy lay down on her side in bed,"So far I think I've been right. After you were gone, everybody else just wanted to go back to normal. I didn't."

"Like I said, don't blame it on me."he told her back.

Amy pulled her pillow close to her cheek."You broke the mold for me. Ever since I've been testing the limits."

He turned and placed a hand on her womanly hip and looped a digit into one of her jeans belt loops,"Even you should know that there are some places you should never go. Not everywhere is nice."

Even through the rough denim fabric, his touch gave her goosebumps. "Tell me about it, but if I avoid an experience because I let fear get the better of me, I'll be it's bitch forever."

He smiled then laid out behind her slowly shifting into his mannequin form."There's such a thing as a healthy amount of fear."

"NO."she said with conviction as the mattress behind her began to dip."I never want to be afraid of anything as much as I was afraid of you ever again."she confessed, getting to the crux of things.

Slappy was flattered. He settled in against her now smaller body and couldn't help but chuckle softly at her,"Doesn't that just make you afraid of being afraid?"

Amy frowned and blushed,"Shut up you, with all your pesky logic."

His stationary lips seemed to broaden into a grin. He loved winning and how his body fit the curves of hers perfectly.

Amy bit her bottom lip, trying to fight back the ridiculous smile and giddiness that was trying to get the better of her. It was stupid that just laying behind her could make her feel this way. Then she realized,"Are we spooning..?"she asked unable to hide the humor in her voice.

"Yes."he replied, leaning further into her warmth.

Amy worried her lip again and felt his cool smooth thumb gaze the exposed skin between her camisoles and jeans. "Aren't you worried someone might walk in..?"

"You locked the door didn't you...?"he asked huskily grinning into her hair.

Oh crap, she totally did."Y-yeah.."the wall of his body against her back made the blood rush to her head. His presence like this felt like laying down beside a tiger.

Slappy drew in a breath, tasting the air. Her hair held the sweet fragrance of vanilla and almonds. "Then don't worry."he exhaled feeling intoxicated. Slappy untangled his finger from her belt loop then flattened his hand across her hip and reveling in how big it looked against her now.

"So...you like being like this...?"she asked.

"It's nice being as big on the outside as I am on the inside."

Amy snorted a laugh.

Slappy scoffed,"What?"

"If that was true you'd be twelve feet tall. Seriously, you're larger than life."she said, not really meaning it as a compliment.

He smiled, satisfied with her answer."Why thank you, slave." He ran his spread hand down the slope of her hip to the small of her waist.

Amy smiled. "Why didn't you take on this form before?"

"I couldn't before."Slappy moved his palm up, over her ribs and dances his finger tips over her injured shoulder and neck."It was an unexpected side effect of drinking Ray's blood."

Amy stuck out the tip of her tongue,"Bleh. That's gross."

He shrugged then passed his hand through her hair. "Tasted odd, but not bad."

"I'll take your word for it-a-ahhh..!"Amy's mind went blank and her entire body went limp like a rubber chicken.

Slappy stopped running his fingers through her hair. "What is it?"

It took Amy a few seconds to come back,"T-that...felt..really good..."

"This..?"he ran his fingers through her wily,thick mane just behind her ear.

"Ahhhhhhhh.."Amy sighed happily in complete surrender.

"How odd..."Slappy commented then a thought popped into his head. "Pffffttt!'he couldn't help but laugh,"Amy..."

Amy made a noise in response, incapable of coherent thought at the moment.

"You really are my dog, aren't you?"he joked loftily.

"WHA-!?"Amy started to sit up to yell at him but Slappy scratched her head harder and she melted back to the bed with a defeated and blissful whimper.

Slappy laughed."Somebody has an Achilles heel..."he said amusing himself with the power he had over her as he stroked her hair. After the display from earlier, it was felt like petting a wolf.

Amy sighed and moaned shamelessly with each stroke. If being a dog meant he'd pet her like this, she'd take it.

"Amy?"Dennis voice called from outside her door before he knocked twice.

Slappy groaned. Petting Amy was oddly therapeutic and didn't appreciate being interrupted. "What?"

"Amy, your cell was ringing and you have nine missed calls from Margo. You should call her back."

Slappy had stopped petting her, so Amy could form thoughts again. "What!? Really..?"she exclaimed starting to sit up.

Slappy frowned and gently pushed her back down by her shoulder."No, bad girl. Stay in bed."

Amy fought against him to sit up,"But Margo-"

Slappy scratched her head in deep strokes, pushing her back to her pillow with next to no effort,"Lay down."

Dennis' eyes widened at the sound of Amy's blissful moaning.  
_What the hell was Slappy doing in there with her with the door locked!?_  
Dennis' mind was flodded with thoughts of Amy's virtue being tainted by the demon doll. "SLAPPY, YOU HAD A CALL TOO."he damned near yelled.

Slappy growled,"From who?"

"A MECHANIC. Y-YOU NEED TO CALL HIM BACK."

"Alright. Get lost, we'll be out in a few minutes."

"THEY CLOSE AT NOON TODAY."Dennis lied.

Slappy looked at the cat-clock in Amy's room,"11:45..shit." Slappy stopped petting Amy and sat up.

Amy sat up too and said something that came out more like a yap or bark than a word.

Slappy found it beyond amusing. "Finish packing. Then maybe I'll take you out for a walk."he said as he walked to their bedroom door.

Amy straightened out her hair with both hands frantically,"I'm not a dog!"Amy finally managed to shout, embarrassed to no end.

Slappy chuckled to himself and opened the door. Dennis stared up at him looking frazzled and angry. Slappy quirked a brow and in looking down noticed that he had never zipped his fly. He zipped up, smirked at Dennis, and sauntered away.

Amy snatched up her brush from her dresser and began straightening her locks. "Who was calling Slappy?"

Dennis walked in her room and looked at the bed with a scrutinizing glare. "A mechanic about something called 'action bastard'. She said that they hadn't wrecked it up too bad yesterday night and it would be ready by tomorrow morning."

Amy almost dropped her brush. "Wait..._what._.?"

"What were you two doing in here!?"Dennis asked obviously upset.

"HE WRECKED ACTION BASTARD!?"she yelled indignantly.

Dennis frowned looking very distraught,"Amy, did he do anything to you because if he did-!"

"I'LL KILL HIM!"she roared and ran past Dennis down the hall.

Dennis watched her go. "I was supposed to say that."


	28. Chapter 28

The Kramer house stood quiet. The light in the windows was a dull amber from the outside as crickets chirped their songs and the cold atumnal wind eddied the fallen leaves.

None of the women in the house were speaking to each other, but Mr. Kramer and Jed sat at the kitchen counter carving a pumpkin that Mr. Kramer had picked up on his way home.

"Not much left to do."Mr. Kramer wiped his knife off on a paper towel and looked at Jed,"Could you go find a candle for me,son?"

"Ha. Wish me luck."he said before heading to the basement.

Amy walked into the kitchen as Jed passed her to go to the basement, then gave her dad a kiss on the cheek."That looks great, daddy."

"Thank you, sweetie pie." Mr. Kramer smiled at his daughter then took a cloth from his pocket to clean his glasses,"Are you holding up okay?"

Amy grinned,"I'm right as rain. Dennis takes good care of me. Even Slappy and Ray have my back if I get into trouble."she said giving him a thumbs up.

He nodded a few times, digesting the information, then turned back to craving out the rest of the crooked smile,"I heard you, Sarah, and your mother got in a fight earlier."

Amy frowned sideways,"Yeah...it was pretty bad."

Mr. Kramer sawed at a rough spot in the pumpkin with the kitchen knife,"Well, try to see things from their point of view, baby. Just because their priorities in life are different that doesn't mean they are any less important to them as yours are to you."

Amy curved her lip and looked at the floor, furrowing her brow,"When you put it that way, I feel like an asshole."she admitted ruefully, then added," But they were wrong, too."

Mr. Kramer popped out the mouth piece and added it to the pile of pumpkin bits in a plastic grocery bag."I know, but you can't make other people feel the way you want them to. You can only control the way you feel." He picked up the gourd with both hands and lifted it to look at the mouth for any glaring defects,"I'm sorry you got hurt. I'm glad you're okay."

Amy sighed then hugged her dad around the shoulders,"Thank you for not making a huge deal out of it."

He set the pumpkin down and patted her wrist,"I could. You frighten me to no end,Amy. I want you to know that."

"I don't mean to."she said sadly.

He gave her wrist a squeeze and kissed her on the temple,"I love you, baby girl. More than you'll ever know."

"Daddy.."Amy bemoaned, feeling badly for worrying her father.

"Hey, I got the candle."Jed said walking back into the kitchen. "All I could find is this little scented one. All the tea lights are gonzo." Jed handed the smallish, pink, half-melted candle over to his father.

Amy shrugged to her brother with a cat-that-ate-the-canary look,"Haaa...sorry."

"Do we have any matches?"he asked his son, peering over his glasses.

Amy produced a silver lighter from her pocket,"I got this."she said proudly, then lit the candle.

"I'm not entirely sure I'm comfortable with you having that, young lady..."Mr. Kramer said as he eyed the ornately engraved fire hazard.

Amy's face flushed with color,"Those were accidents!"Amy responded defensively.

Jed laughed and Mr. Kramer just shook his head.

Sometimes he wonder what kind of father he was to her. Was he doing right by her or by himself? Anyone on the outside would probably say he was enabling her in her bad behavior...and they'd be right.  
But on the other hand, he had tried the other routes; harsh discipline, medication, therapists, counseling, or anything sort of juvenile detention or institutionalization but none of them made her any better. It seemed that the more they tried to contain her behavior the more virulently she broke away from them.  
But when he let her be and do whatever she was going to do, it ended in moments like this where she was his sweetheart again. After a little investigation he usually found a fairly decent reason for why Amy did the things she did, even if her responses were extreme. Honestly, despite the fairly intense past week since the return on the living dummy, he hadn't seen Amy smile like this in quite a while.

He knew it had everything to do with Slappy, which worried him.  
He certainly hoped that this more subdued doll would keep a watch over her...or at least keep her smiling.

"All righty then!"he announced after setting the candle in the pumpkin. Mr. Kramer smiled proudly at his children then picked it up,"Let's go set her outside!"

"HALLOWEEN FOOLS!"Amy declared throwing up obscure hand signs.

"WITCHES AND POES!"Jed countered running to the front door with Amy close behind.

* * *

"Hey guys, you should really come up and see the pumpkin Dad and Jed carved. It looks really great this year."Amy said trotting down the basement stairs.

Ray and Slappy were sitting far apart from one another on the couch and gave her synchronized half-glares, rubbing their cheeks where she had smacked them with her hair brush earlier.

"What? You're still upset about that?"she asked at the bottom on the stairs.

They both turned away from her and crossed their arms.

"Okay, YOU gave me whiplash,"she said pointing at Slappy," and YOU-,"she said turning her finger to Ray,"-nearly bled me out and turned me into an undead stalker." Amy waltzed up behind them and pinched their ears,"So get over it and never put Ray behind the wheel of Action Bastard ever again!"

"Ouch! Amy!"Ray whined and swatted at her hand.

"Hrmpf...doesn't hurt."Slappy said deadpan, still crossing his arms as she pinched his wooden curve of an earlobe.

Amy let go and smacked him up-side the head instead.

"HEY!"he barked at her.

Amy smiled at him, satisfied. "Come on, after all the abuse I've gotten from you, it's about time I get some turn-about."

Slappy just glared at her.

"Are you sure it's safe to go up there?"Ray asked cautiously.

Amy stuck out her tongue playfully,"Yeah, Sara and I have an unspoken rule to not fight around dad."

Slappy sneered,"That seems unfair to your mother."

"She's an instigator, so don't feel too bad for her."Amy snapped at him.

Slappy waggled his hand in the air flippantly,"Whatever. I'm sick of your dysfunctional family problems. Let's focus on mine instead, like we're supposed to."

"I can dig it."Amy said hopping onto the orange couch between Slappy and Ray. "So what's the plan?"

Slappy listed off on his fingers,"We go to Boston. I talk to a folklorist, look through his things, and then make final preparations from there."

"Cool. I gotta run some errands before we leave, though. So...when is Action Bastard coming home?"she asked eagerly.

Slappy looked at her, annoyed. "Why are you so crazy over that thing? I mean, it's getting weird."

"I like sexy antiques."Amy said, wiggling her eyebrows at him suggestively.

Ray bust out laughing while Slappy just shook his head.

Amy grinned at both of them then sat back into the couch,tucking up her legs underneath her. "It seems like it's been _waaaay_ over a week since all this started."

"It's only been a week..?"Ray asked asked, stretching his arms out across the back of the couch.

Slappy nodded. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together in front of himself,"I came to Amy's door step last Friday afternoon, so it has been over a week."

Amy shrugged,looking rather cozy,"Close enough."

"Just think how long this weekend is going to be."Ray commented, staring up at the floor rafters.

Amy grinned like an idiot. There was a large part of her that never wanted any of this to end. "I can't wait to get started."she said happily.

"Well, then, let's all finish packing so we can get going first thing in the morning. The ca-"Slappy suddenly paused. He could almost feeling the daggers Amy was staring into the back of his head,"...Action Bastard will be here at eight. I expect to be on the road by eight fifteen."

"After all this build up, I feel like tomorrow could be the beginning of a new chapter in my life or something."Amy said almost beaming with excitement.

* * *

Twelve hours later Amy sat in the back of Action Bastard, holding her jar of seashells and staring listlessly at the scenery outside the tinted car window as it flickered by.

"Are you okay, Amy?" Ray asked over his shoulder from the front passengers seat.

She glanced at him then back out the window. "Yeah...it just really sucks to get kicked out of your house is all."

Ray looked to Slappy beside him in his mannequin form driving. He stared at him until it was obvious that he was intentionally avoiding taking about the events from hours before.

Ray rolled his eyes then unbuckled himself.

"What are you doing?"Slappy asked hastily as Ray rose from his seat and began to climb into the back seat. "Goddammit Ray!"he yelled when his ass was right by his face.

"Whaaat..?"Ray said playfully and waggled it at him.

Slappy's head clunked against the window trying to avoid his swaying hips,"Get your ass back there!"he scolded him then slapped his ass hard.

"AH!"Ray tumbled into the backseat in a graceless heap,"Je-sus!"he cursed and rubbed his rear. "Ouch...now I know where you get your name from..."

Amy smiled at Ray as he righted himself beside her. "I'm okay, Ray. It was just a little traumatizing to have mom say she didn't care if I ever came back."

Ray tried to console her. "She didn't mean it."

She sighed and turned back the the window and rested her forehead on the cold glass,"She did."

Slappy peered back at them in the rear view mirror. "Your father isn't going to let her throw you out on the streets. Quit complaining and repress your feelings like a man."

"Thanks Slappy."Amy said in a sarcastic monotone. He did have a point,though. She'd have to hope her mom wouldn't box up and sell or donate all her stuff she couldn't bring with her before her dad could straighten things out. "I don't want to talk about my family anymore."she sighed. "What were your families like?" Amy asked and looked to Ray then Slappy,"Slappy?"

Slappy thought about it, scowling,"I've never really had a use for family members. In fact, the last time I trusted anyone in my family I ended up homeless, broke, and slumming it with a disgruntled, socially dysfunctional, teenager and an emotionally unstable demon with daddy issues."

Ray frowned and blushed at the truth,"You can be a real ass, Slappy. You know that?"

Amy crossed her arms around her jar of collected seashells and pursed her lips out,"If you're so great then why didn't your friends come to help you when shit got real?"Amy snapped at him.

"I don't need friends."he said flatly.

"Obviously you do."Ray said, mimicking Amy's stance and referencing the two of them.

"You aren't my friends."he grumbled.

Amy gasped,"Then what are we, huh!?"

Slappy narrowed his eyes and they shifted from side to side,"What do you think you are?"

Amy frowned,"Don't you answer my question with a question!"

Slappy smirked at her through the rear view mirror,"Why?"

Amy lifted her jar above her head and had to use her last bit of restraint to not throw it,"AHHHH!"she yelled.

Slappy smiled,"I'm sorry, are you feeling disgruntled?"

"NEVER MIND. KEEP YOUR SECRETS."she yelled and tossed her seashell collection into the cargo space behind her with a soft thud.

Slappy grinned to himself and leaned back against the seat's headrest.

Amy glared at the back of Slappy's head,"Whatever...what about you Ray?"

Ray perked up,"My family? Well...they were great..."he said with a bittersweet smile and a sigh.

She scooted closer to him and pulled her olive green blanket from the back then leaned against him,"What happened? Where are they?"Amy asked settling at his side.

Ray sighed sadly and drew Amy in closer, drawing the blanket around them both. "They died. I'm guessing that they're in heaven."

Slappy snorted.

"Shut up, Slappy."Amy growled.

Slappy rolled his eyes,"Here's a spoiler. There is no such thing as heaven. Sorry."

"How the hell would you know? You're a demon!"she snapped.

"_That's_ how I _know_. There are no pearly gates, some sort of nirvana, or magical fields of _never ending joy_..."he said, his words dripping with sarcasm.

Ray squeezed Amy a little closer letting the warmth of her body soothe the cold stone in his stomach of unease,"Then what is there...?"

Slappy stared down the long highway lined with colorful autumnal colored trees in a long pause then spoke,"It's been a long time since I..died...but the other side isn't something happy like you would be lead to believe." He switched his steering arm. He propped his elbow on the drivers side door and rested his cheek on his fist. "Heaven is just something people came up with to deal with the fear of death."he said bleakly.

Something was amiss. Amy crossed her eyes and furrowed her brow. "Wait, '_since you died_'? I thought you said you were a demon..?"

"I am, but.."Slappy sighed as he passed a minivan,"..it's complicated."

"It isn't like we don't have another seven or more hours ahead of us."Ray said with a somber shrug.

Ray had a point. Maybe this was the time to mull over his past a little and see if he could dredge up anything useful. Then again, there was probably a reason he had suppressed the memories to begin with.  
_Eh, to hell with it._  
"I haven't thought about in a while, honestly. I'm not sure how you would categorize what I am.." Slappy wasn't particularly eloquent when simply speaking straight out of his head. "Ray, do you remember what it was like when your demon took over?"

Ray shuddered and let Amy snuggle up and lay her head beneath his chin,"Yeah. It felt like I was being smothered into a little corner of my soul while something else took possession of my body. All I could do was watch. It was awful."

Slappy sat back up straight and switched steering hands. He made an elegant twirling motion with his right hand,"Alright. The same thing happened to me, the only difference is that I was the demon in that scenario." He pointed to himself then replaced his hand back on the steering wheel.  
"You see, there was a saaad little soul bound to the wood in the cursed coffin I was made from. I'm not sure if my creator knew it was there or not since he never allowed me to go over the particular grimoire he had used to make my brother or myself, so I don't know for sure. I suppose it doesn't matter anyway."he said trailing off. He huffed then continued,"Anyway; I won the possession of our vessel easily and for a long time choked him out. He was almost nothing to me, but all the same he somehow persisted on in even the smallest of ways and I was never able to completely snuff him out. Eventually, I came to terms with him and he with me, and we chose to metabolize one another, thus becoming one entity. So, I am technically a demon with a soul."Slappy glanced back at his captive audience in the backseat. "I said it was complicated."

Ray fiddled with a wily lock of Amy's hair as he mulled over Slappy's story. It would certainly be nice not to have to fight with his own demon anymore. He looked to Slappy in the mirror. "Do you think I could do the same thing with my demon?"

Slappy shrugged. "Depends on his personality. If he likes you enough to share."

Amy smiled impishly,"Does that mean you liked the soul-guy you were sharing your body with?"

"I don't like anybody."Slappy responded a little too quickly.

"_God_ _forbid_."Ray chuckled.

Slappy huffed,"I'm done reminiscing. Change the subject."

"I need to pee."Amy said abruptly.

Slappy grimaced. He didn't want to stop, they were on the highway. "Hold it."

Amy groaned,"I can't tie mine in a knot like you guys can! Come on. Pull over and I'll pee in the woods."she said pointing to the trees whizzing past.

Slappy had a thought. "Did you drink all of your sports drink?"

"Yeah, that's why I gotta go."she responded.

"Pee in the bottle."

Amy balked. "Are you kidding!?"

"We're making good time. I don't want to stop."

Amy couldn't believe him. She picked up the empty container from the floor board and held it up,"If you make me pee in this bottle, I'm going to pour it on you when I'm done."

Slappy quickly made a disgusted face, then leered at her in the mirror,"You wouldn't..not in your precious Action Bastard."

An evil grin spread across Amy's face,"Wanna' see how dog-like I can be?"

Slappy turned on the blinker.


	29. Chapter 29

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT AHEAD

* * *

"I'm going to the picnic and I'm bringing..."Amy smiled and pointed to the backseat,"Apples.."then to herself,"..borscht.."then with an eye roll to Slappy,"..cyanide.." Amy named off the list of their game of 'Picnic' in alphabet order until she got stuck. "Err...what was 'R'?"

"Ricin."Slappy said as he hunched down to get a better look at the big road sign they were passing under, making note of what exit they needed to take.

"Oh right." Amy nodded and continued listing off foods and various hazardous materials beside him in the front passengers seat. "Ricin, salad, turkey, uranium, velvet cake, and watermelon!"she announced with a jubilant toss of her arms in the air that morphed into a stretch and a yawn."Your turn, Slappy."

Slappy only glanced at her. "Did you make reservations at a B&amp;B like I asked you to at the last stop?"

"Yeah. The one in Hartford with the fireplace and waffles." Amy grinned and fished her phone from her pocket. "Ummm...you're going to want to get off up here at Scott Swamp and go until we hit main street. If we follow that until it turns into Waterville then, BAM, we run right into it. "

Slappy turned on his blinker and merged into the next lane. They had been on the road all day, but they had just made it to outside of Hartford, Connecticut.

Maybe if they hadn't taken all those scenic detours and cheesy tourist attractions they would already be there...  
If he were being honest, the detours hadn't been all bad. He liked how everything around them was dieing. He had to admit that this part of the human world was, for lack of a worse term, beautiful at this time of the year. Slappy hadn't taken much time to do much sight seeing in the human world before, so perhaps it all hadn't been a total waste of time.

Slappy yawned and couldn't figure out why. It wasn't as if he had lungs, but he did feel tired..._again_. "You know, being with you is literally exhausting. I've never had to rest this much in my entire life."he grumbled to Amy.

"Really? That's weird, because I feel fine. Great actually."she said flippantly.

Slappy's eyes started feeling heavy and he glared at Amy sideways."Hmmm...maybe there's some kind of leeching going on."

Amy smiled at him, looking away from her phone."I'm sucking the life out of you,eh?"

Slappy looked her dead in the eye. "Yes, Amy. You suck."

Amy grinned at him then put her phone away. "Shut up."

The game now forgotten, they rode in comfortable silence as headlights came and went in the night. The heat in the car kept it's occupants warm as unseasonal snow flurries fluttered down onto the windshield.

"I'm hungry."Amy said suddenly.

Slappy felt himself snap out of a dangerous daze, not realizing he had fallen into a highway hypnosis. "W-what?"

"I'm hungry."she repeated.

"Again?"he asked incredulously.

Amy sat in her seat sideways. "I haven't eaten since breakfast."

"What about that bag of little oranges you stunk the car up with?"

"Those were just a snack,"she sniffed the air,"..and an air freshener."

Slappy looked her up and down in her seat. "It isn't like it'll kill you to miss a meal."

She didn't appreciate what he was insinuating. "You won't like me when I'm hangry..."

He shrugged. "Maybe..they'll have something to eat when we get there?"

"What if they don't?"she asked.

"I don't know. Sucks to be you."he huffed.

Amy grimaced at him then crossed her arms. She looked in the backseat where Ray lay asleep across the seats. He had to be tired after today. Amy smiled. "Ray is asleep."

Slappy nodded. "It's been a long day."

Amy gazed at Ray's serene expression. "He seemed pretty happy today,ya know?"

Slappy changed lanes again to let a car pass them. "He hasn't been in the sun in a while. I guess that's why he whined and made us stop at every stupid attraction we came across."

Amy smiled at him warmly."It was nice of you to let him."

Slappy cleared his nonexistent throat. "I'm not nice. Stop calling me ugly names."

Amy stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

Slappy frowned and pointed ahead on them. "Is this it on the right past this intersection?"

She arched her back and stretched. "Yup. That's it!"

Slappy turned right and found a parking spot closest to the hotel. He felt a twinge of worry that they wouldn't still receive them at this late hour and he'd have to kill somebody, but it was unlikely. He turned the car off and sighed in relief. "I'll go check us in. You and Ray fetch the luggage." he ordered Amy beforestepping out into the brisk autumn air. He begrudgingly cast his human illusion yet again, massaging his face into an acceptable appearance.

Amy laid across the console that divided the front seats and gave Slappy a sarcastic little salute. "As you wish, _master." _

Slappy stared down at her expressionless. He knew she was only being sarcastic, but that word on her lips, directed at him, gave him a hot shiver of satisfaction.

Amy laughed then climbed into the backseat."Wake up, Ray!"Amy yelled close to his ear, startling the hell out of him. "Apparently, we're Slappy's pack mules and have to carry everything in."

Ray glared at Amy groggily as he tossed the green blanket off and sat up. "Why am I a pack mule when you're the only one with saddle bags...?"he asked sleepily. "_OOF_!"Ray coughed then gasped after Amy punched him in the chest.

"Just get up!" Amy exited the car and went around back to open the cargo hatch.

Slappy grinned devilishly as he shut the car door and walked off. _Master, eh?_ He wondered how he could make her say that again...

* * *

"Whoa...swanky."Ray said in awe as they walked up to the arched bridging white staircases that connected to the second and third floors of the old fashioned hotel.

Amy hefted a duffel bag higher on her shoulder and rolled a suitcase with Slappy's things in it behind her. "Yeah, it reminded me of the the Party House, so I thought I'd give it a try."

He gave Amy an approving nod. "It's nice. What floor are we on?"

"Three..."Amy sighed.

Ray looked to the staircases then back to Amy. She looked so weary to him. "Let me carry the bags, Amy. I'll get them up there a lot easier than you will."

Amy looked at him in surprise. "I can do it."

Ray smiled at her and looked back in the direction they came from. "I know you can, but there was a sign back there that said the kitchen here closes in ten minutes. You should go get something to eat and I can get us settled in."

Accepting his offer would make her feel guilty, especially after making such a to-do about wanting to carry her own weigh before.  
Amy's stomach growled as if on cue and she sighed. "If you really don't mind...?"

Ray shook his head. "Not at all. Go eat. Take your time."

"Well, okay!"Amy loaded all her luggage on Ray and ran off in the direction they came from. "Thanks, Ray! I'll tell you what the people are like here when I get back!"

Ray grunted and his legs bowed under the weight. Christ..what did Amy pack? Rocks?  
He had to take each step up to their room in little levitating bounces until he got to the top floor.  
Ray breathe a sigh or relief then his eyes widened. "Oh crap, I didn't ask her what room number." Ray looked of the banister down to the vacant help desk. He grumbled then remembered that he didn't need to ask anybody for anything. Ray sniffed the air. "Ah, that way,"he said following Slappy's scent. He follow his scent and eventually came to room 309. Before he knocked he stopped, suddenly very self aware. "Did..did I just...?" Ray groaned and hung his head. "I just sniffed him out like a dog." He knocked twice and waited. After a few seconds of nothing he knocked again. "Slappy?" He pressed his ear to the door and heard a curious commotion before hurried footsteps came and answered the door.

Slappy opened the door with flushed cheeks and his shirt half un-tucked. "You didn't get a room key?"

"Umm..." Something was up. Ray peered over Slappy's shoulder at the room suspiciously,"..no. They didn't offer us one."

Slappy's eyes shifted nervously. "What?"he asked impatiently.

With his next breath Ray picked up on what was the matter.  
_So that was what it was._  
Ray smirked at Slappy knowingly. "Oh, nothing.."he said and drifted in with all the bags.

Slappy cursed internally as he watched him, then closed the door. "Where's Amy?"

Ray deposited the luggage by an orange chair at the window then looked the room over. Basic but nice. Two double beds with white bed linens, separated by a bed stand. There was a single large dresser made of some dark hardwood with a large flat screen television mounted above it. To the right of that was the door to the bathroom where Slappy's scent was heaviest.  
Ray flashed him a silver smile. "She's getting something to eat at the restaurant downstairs."

Slappy ran a hand through his chestnut quaff of hair trying to straighten it. He crossed his arms and leaned against the front door. "Alright then." He glanced back at Ray who was staring him down. "What's your problem? Stop staring at me like that."

Ray could feel a purr building in his chest and he crossed the room to Slappy. "But you're cute."

Slappy panicked and flattened his back against the door, finding it quite sturdy and unyielding. "I'm not cute!"

Ray laughed darkly at him,"What's got _you_ so aroused..?"

Slappy groaned and covered his face,"I'm not."he lied.

Ray slapped his hands on the door on either side of Slappy, trapping him. "Yes you are. I can smell it all over you, so don't bother lying." Ray moved in closer,"So what was it? Not one of those hags behind the greeting desk, was it?"

"Shut up, Ray-"he snapped at him. He didn't want him know it was from thinking of Amy calling him master. "I'm not..._aroused_.."he said the word as if it were the most disgusting word in the world.

Ray grabbed Slappy's crotch and squeezed.

Slappy cried out sharply. "What are you doing!?"he shrieked grabbing Ray's wrist. He tried to pull him off but Ray's grip only tightened on his most sensitive area. He hissed and shut his eyes.

"I can't lie to me about this.."he purred. "So, tell me what it was?"

"N-no.."Slappy said defiantly. "C-cut it out, Ray..."

Ray could feel the hard profile of his cock urging beneath the constriction of his pants. Mesmerized, he gently kneaded his palm along the hardening length in a firm rhythm.

Slappy's mind completely shut off. His head 'thunked' against the door when it dropped back and he started making soft desperate noises he had never made before. Why did that have to feel so damned good!?

Ray didn't know why the older demon was fighting this. He obviously needed it. "You already started this in the bathroom. Why don't you let me finish it?"

What Ray's right hand was doing to him left all his other senses dull, until he heard his zipper being pulled. "W-whoa!" he yelped and pulled Ray's hand away.

Ray let Slappy move his hand, but then he dropped to his knees and buried his face at his crotch. He bit Slappy's bulging shaft through his pants. Not hard enough to penetrate the fabric, but enough to illicit wonderful erotic noises from him. When he stilled, Ray grinned and lazily shook Slappy's grip from his wrist.

Slappy gripped the door knob for support. He glared down at Ray and felt another pulse of something between terror and pleasure surge through him at the sight. He shut his eyes tight, trying to reclaim his right mind. "_Get that out of your mouth, Ray-!_"he growled.

Unphased by Slappy's bravado, Ray gripped the sensitive softness at the base of his shaft with his left hand, gently. He opened his mouth to let Slappy go, then pressed a deep lick along the outline of his hardness.

From a touch on the arm to being hit in the face with a shovel, he could feel as a dummy, but in this form it was on an entirely different level. "_I..I can feel that..._"he breathed in lust filled wonder. He was disgusted with himself for wanting this. It was far too human...but Ray licked him again and Slappy's mind blanked.

Ray lifted Slappy's shirt and licked just below his belly button while he worked his pants and underwear down enough to unrestrict him.

Slappy clenched his jaw and looked away in shame when he felt himself exposed. He was completely out of his element and at Ray's mercy.

"So your whole body changes when you put on the illusion in this form?"Ray asked before licking the very tip of his flared pink head.

That one little raw lick sent a jolt though him and Slappy violently slammed back against the room door and almost screamed in something much more like pleasure than pain. "GODDAMMIT RAY!?"he yelled looking down at him with dilated, pleading and conflicted eyes. He needed to run away, or change his form, or anything at that moment, but he couldn't make himself.

Ray watch the changes in Slappy's expression while he slowly took him in his mouth. Fear and uncertainty changed to shock laced with pleasure, then to pure desire.  
Slappy was rock hard on his tongue and felt deliciously lewd his mouth. Ray gripped Slappy's hips and dipped forward while pulling him deeper all the way into his throat then hummed evilly.

He tossed his head back violently, hard enough to leave a dent in the door as a strangled, shaking cry tore from his throat as his legs buckled beneath him.

Ray caught him halfway against the door laughed. He licked Slappy's throat with his black tongue,"This is your first time, isn't it?"

Slappy shuddered,"_Y-yes_."

"_Lucky me_."he breathed then aggressively took Slappy's mouth with his own in an imposing, ravishing kiss.

Slappy trembled violently and moaned into Ray's mouth, helpless to the need that over took him. In a matter of seconds they were splayed out on the floor. Slappy clawing at Ray's clothing and Ray doing the same to him.

It came to a head when Ray pinned Slappy to the floor. He loomed over him panting, his lips flush with color unnatural to him. His naked body was graffitied with scratches along his sides and his eyes burned demonic red. Slappy still had on his button up shirt, but it was ripped open and missing all but two buttons. Bright red scratches across his chest matched the red bow tie that barely hung around his throat.

In a moment of clarity Slappy stared up at Ray with his face flush and lips parted. "The fuck are we doing..?"  
Ray didn't answer. He closed the space between them and kissed him with more gentleness this time, then moved down to his throat, nipping and sucking on the delicate flesh there.  
Slappy had always thought that should the situation arise, his first experience like this would have been with a woman. But damn..Ray _was_ a beautiful bastard. Hair like spun gold, eyes the same pale blue of a clear midday sky, pale smooth skin like a porcelain doll, and a masculine form that managed to be supple at the same time._  
_Slappy propped himself up on an elbow and tangled his fingers in Ray's blonde tussled hair with his free hand.

Ray kissed down the speckled trial of light brown freckles on Slappy's abdomen until he reached the soft fuzzy chestnut colored fluff below his belly button. He felt Slappy's hand in his hair and looked looked up. Slappy gazed back at him with nervous lust filled ultramarine eyes. It was almost comical how his usually perfectly quaffed hair was now a mess. It hung just low enough to touch his reddened lips. Ray smiled then nuzzled lower, smoothing his hands over freckled pale thighs.

Slappy's head lulled back with his eyes squeezed shut. His whole body tensed when Ray's mouth enveloped him again. "_Ahh-! F-f-..fu..fuck..!_"he groaned through gritted teeth. This time it was different. It chilled him to the core but made him burn all the hotter at the same time. The sensation intensified to almost maddening as Ray took him in all the way down to his base, then pulled back in one long, languid suck that made his toes go numb. Ray's lips reached his cock head then pull away with a loud wet smack. Slappy shivered all over and he _needed more_. He quickly gripped Ray's hair and forced him to go down on him again.

"GAH!" He hissed in pain and his thighs burned an instant later.

He opened his eyes and saw red eyes glaring up at him.  
Those red eyes were just as beautiful on Ray as his blue ones. He could see now how Dawes would want him back so badly.  
His thighs oddly bled where Ray dug his nails into them in retaliation. "S-sorry..."he shakily apologized.  
Slappy lessened his grip and decided it was best to let Ray do what he wanted.

After that, Ray set to shorter quicker rhythm that made Slappy writhe and gasp beneath his efforts. Ray hummed in satisfaction as he sucked him off with a desire to please he hadn't had in a long time.

Ray was definitely doing something with his saliva. He could tell from the way his skin tingled where the trails of it trickled down his balls then lower. Slappy had to brace himself on both his elbows to keep from flopping to the floor. Ray sure seemed to know what he was doing. As soon as Slappy was finally getting used to his tongue, Ray scraped him with his teeth. His hips started rocking against his mouth without him realizing, until Ray started meeting his retreats with increased vigor. What Ray was doing to him quickly built from thrill inducing into a deep throbbing pressure. Ray drew hard on him and Slappy's eyes went wide. He gasped and shuddered, suddenly scared for some reason, and pushed hard on Ray's shoulder."R-Ray..stop-!"

Ray stopped and pulled away, letting his thick saliva drip all over Slappy's cock. He looked at him quizzically. He could have sworn that Slappy was about to come. "What is it?"

Slappy didn't answer for long time, he just caught his breath. When he finally spoke, his voice cracked. "_I don't know_."

The conflicted, distressed look on Slappy's face seemed to wake Ray from his aphrodisic stupor. "Hey.." He grasped Slappy's hand braced on his shoulder."We can stop. It's okay."

Slappy pushed Ray away and quickly got up off the floor. He stumbled to the bathroom and slammed the door behind him.

"Slappy?" Ray rose from his knees on the floor and walked over to the bathroom door. He listened and could hear only muffled breathing. "Slappy...I'm sorry..? Are you okay? Did I do something wrong?"  
Slappy didn't respond, but he could hear the shower start abruptly.

Ray felt so confused.  
He thought back to what he could have done to make Slappy react the way he did.  
_Maybe, Slappy just wasn't ready?_  
Ray looked at the clothes strew across the floor.  
_He was really into it..what did he do wrong?_  
Ray starting picking up the ripped clothes and tossed them on a bed.  
_Slappy wanted to do it didn't he? He never said n-..._

Ray froze just before tossing Slappy's pants on the bed.

Slappy did say 'no'.  
He told him to cut it out.  
Ray even realized the he was being reluctant.  
He pulled his hand away and tried to make him stop.  
Slappy didn't want to do it.  
All that had just been Slappy's body responding to something new.

Ray covered his mouth in horror. Oh god..._it was his first time.  
_  
He looked at the bathroom door. Ray dropped the clothes and strode to the door quickly. "Slappy!" Ray knocked on the door earnestly. "Slappy, I'm so sorry!"he cried, mortified. He tried the door knob to find it locked.  
Ray dropped his forehead against the door frame. "I didn't mean to take it that far. I-I don't know what I was thinking. I'm sorry."  
He stood there until steam wafted from under the door.  
Ray closed his blue eyes and cringed inwardly. He placed his hand to the door.  
"Please forgive me.."he breathed before walking away.

* * *

...if someone comments, i'll post the next chapter tonight.


	30. Chapter 30

Amy stretched out and relished in the soft, warm, pillow like blanket she was enveloped in. The sun was already peeking through the black out blinds in the room and the alarm clock on the dresser read 9:07am.

She had stayed out much later than intended, but the cute waitress had let her meet the cook. After that she helped them close everything down and had a few drinks.

Hey, if they didn't ask her age she wasn't going to tell. There was no way she was going to turn down a free fireball cider or two...or four..or...she had had a rough week and stopped counting after everything had started being hilarious.

Looking at the empty bed across from her, she vaguely remembered staggering in late last night and asking Slappy something as she climbed into bed next to him. She couldn't remember what he said or what she asked. She vaguely remembered him holding her, but that was probably just a dream.

She rolled out of bed and landed gracefully on her feet for a brief moment then fell face down on the floor. "OH GOD...I have a hang over...or I'm still drunk."she mumbled into the unforgiving carpet.

"I see you're awake."Slappy said crossly as he walked into the room looking like a human again with a news paper and his atlas tucked under his arm.

"The earth is spinning..."she moaned, ignoring Slappy.

"Goddammit, Amy."Slappy sighed and walked over to her.

"Make it stop...?"she asked him.

Slappy crouched down beside her. "Amy, check out is in less than an hour. Get yourself together."

"You're so loud..."she whispered and shut her eyes tightly ,"..shhh..."

Ray came into the room just after Slappy. Slappy and Ray stared at each other in silence. Ray was the first to avert his eyes, then he closed the door behind him. "What's wrong with Amy?"he asked.

"She had a regrettable night boozing it up."he said looking at his pet on the floor still dressed in her same clothes as the day before.

"NO! It was AWESOME! I'm going to marry that waitress and buy pink monopoly houses with her!"Amy yelled abstractly at him.

Ray laughed with restrained mirth then walked over to Amy on the floor and picked her up,"Come on keg queen..."

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!"she chanted as the world spun faster than if she were on a tilt-a-whirl until Ray laid her back down on the bed.

"Sleep it off. We'll take everything back down to the car."he said and smoothed her hair away from her eyes.

"I gonna' to die..."she whined.

"You'll be fine, you idiot."Slappy snapped at her, but his voice lacked it's usual venom. He looked at her prone on the bed and grabbed a pillow then dropped it over her eyes. "Better?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Sit. Stay."he commanded her with a point of his finger.

Amy snored in response.

"She didn't come back to the room until around four."Ray said with a shrug in Amy's direction.

They stood watching her sleep in silence. Ray was about to say something, but Slappy cut him off. "We're never to talk about it. It never happened."

Ray hugged his arms and sighed sadly. "Fine. If that's what you want."

* * *

"Are we there yet...?" Amy asked in monotone from the backseat. Her expression obscured by the a pair of big black sun glasses, she wobbled stiffly with the motion of Action Bastard.

"Has the car stopped? Then, NO."Slappy said sharply.

"I think I need to throw up."Amy grumbled.

"Hold it."he commanded her.

"I hate you."she moaned.

"Go back to sleep, Amy."Ray said with a sigh.

"I hate you too."she pouted.

"You don't mean that."Ray said feigning hurt.

Amy's eyebrows steepled just above the brim of the shades,"I don't. I'm sorry.."Amy whined with a comically intense frown.

Ray smiled at her pitifully,"Aww..Slappy, look at our little drunkard."

Slappy pressed the atlas to Rays chest with his free hand. "Stop fooling around and navigate for me. We're almost there."

Ray looked at Slappy's atlas. "The Molloy residence should be up ahead on the right."he said pointing as they passed an old graveyard.

Slappy took a deep breath and calmed the slight unease he felt at the idea of potentially seeing an old nemesis again. Perhaps it was a good thing Amy got hammered the night before. Maybe she'd stay in the damn car the whole time.  
He pulled up in the driveway of the New England house and put Action Bastard in park. "Alright. I'll go in first and see if he's home."  
Slappy looked to Ray,"Keep her in here."

"I don't get to come in?"Ray asked feeling disappointed.

Slappy raised a brow at Ray. "Do you think it wise to bring her in OR to leave her alone?"he asked.

"Go get em' champ."Ray said giving him one of Amy's thumbs up.

Slappy rolled his eyes and exited the car. The house was much as he remembered, but seemed much smaller. That was to be expected with his new stature. After taking more of Ray's blood before they left the B&amp;B he would be able to maintain a very convincing human. Hopefully enough to go unnoticed by the Molloy or Crosby girl.  
He knocked on the door and waited for a response.  
Nothing.  
He peered in the windows only to have his gaze obscured by blinds. It was almost noon. If Molloy's father was home then he should have answered and Molly would still be at school at this hour.

"Oh well."Slappy sighed. He looked at his hand and made a fist. It turned wooden and rigid, then he thrust it through one of the little windows along the front door frame.  
"What idiot instals these in their house? You might as well hang a big 'rob me' sign.."he murmured to himself.  
He reached around to unlocked the door and walked in. He was shocked to find that there was no security system installed in the house, but thinking back, it sort of made sense with the ditz of a father Molly had.  
He closed the door behind him and casually waltzed through the house, then up the stairs. He was startled when he passed by a hall mirror, not recognizing himself at first. The man staring back at him looked very human and very real. He scrunched up his nose at a little fly away lock of silky chestnut hair from his bangs. He worked it back in with the rest of the wave, then smirked arrogantly at himself and continued up to the attic.

The feeling was familiar as he approached the door.

There were absolutely some dangerous items housed in this room.

Exactly what he needed...

He smiled wickedly as he turned the door knob. The door creaked open slowly and filled the room with a runway of light. He was fine to search the room with out turning on the light and walked in to investigate his options of weapons against his brother...that mind stealer would be great if Britney hadn't relocated or destroyed it.

As he rifled through the cornucopia of magic and cursed items he was too distracted to hear the figure creeping up behind him.

**"GET HIM!"**

Slappy turned around just as a shrill voice called out the order and a bat came swinging at his face. He barely caught the bat with his hand, but it only served as a buffer to the blow to his face. He stumbled and fell as he was tackled around the middle, falling into a basket of old small car parts that clattered to the floor around him.

"STRANGER DANGER!"a light girly voice shrieked as he was pelted with a flurry of weak but moderately painful kicks.

"CUT IT OUT!"he yelled shielding his face with his arm and shuffling backwards on the floor as the little quarter-back wanna be scuttled away.

"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"a girl screeched and started poking him with a cinnamon bark broom.

"FOR FUCKS SAKE!"Slappy raged in annoyance and snatched the broom by it's bristles. The girl with the long,wavy copper hair at the other end of it gasped in surprise as he yanked forward dragging her off balance. Slappy's eyes widened as she came flying down on top of him, chest first. His vision was blotted out by her soft yellow sweater and even softer,surprisingly heavy, breasts beneath. They fell back with a soft thud and the new experience let Slappy a little stunned.  
Well this was new.  
Those were really soft..and warm.  
Slappy smiled stupidly, momentarily forgetting himself.

"Molly!"Britany yelled and lifted her weapon in the air again,"You let her go you creep!"

_What? He wasn't even touching her!_

Slappy came back to his senses and started yelling back at Britany, but found it fruitless because he was still being muffled by breasts. "Whud yuh phes ght oph mhe?"he asked nicely.

Molly sat up on his lap quickly and grabbed her chest,"I'm sorry!"she yelled blushing.

"Don't apologize! Get away from that guy!"Lizzy yelled brandishing an ivory handled umbrella.

She looked back at him and he grinned at her devilishly,"Unless you'd like to stay,eh Molly?"he asked with a bump of his hips.

"KAHHH! PERVERT!"she wailed and slapped him across the face then dashed to Lizzy.

"WHO ARE YOU!? WHY ARE YOU ROBBING MOLLY'S DAD?"Britany yelled at him.

Slappy sat up straight on the floor and rubbed his cheek. He he deserved that.."Calm down. I just need a few things. Let me get them and I'll go."

"NO! Lizzy! Call the police!"Britany yelled.

Slappy narrowed his eyes at her dangerously. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"What are you going to do? There's three of us and only one of you! If you piss us off we'll beat you off!"Britany yelled.

Slappy snickered at her unintentional dirty pun then smiled broadly,"I suppose I'd do this."he said and spun his index finger in a quick little circle causing the door the slam shut behind them, plunging the room into darkness.  
The girls screamed in surprise and Slappy jumped to his feet and dealt with Lizzy first. He snatched her cellphone away easily then casually pushed her to the floor taking her umbrella away as well. Next he moved on to Britany. He swatted her across the bottom with the umbrella then pushed her in the same direction as Lizzy.

"Get away from us!"Britany yelled and began swinging around what looked like a weird, wrinkled baseball bat indiscriminately. Slappy dodged it easily by just leaning back a few times. It was very amusing until Molly flipped on the light.

Britany looked at him and he saw a flash in her eyes right before she swung at him again. It came down at him and he caught it with one hand. He grinned evilly, dropped the umbrella and yanked her toward him as he did with Molly earlier. As she tumbled forward he raised his hand to strike her, but just as he saw the fright in her eyes he stopped.

She was just a girl. He...couldn't.

Slappy's face skewed up as he fought an inner turmoil.

He should want to hit her. It was his first impulse and he never second guessed himself before, so...why now?

Slappy grunted and lowered his hand, his rage gone. He let go of the end of her weapon and sighed. "I'm not going to hurt you, Brittany. We need to talk."he said feeling disgusted with himself.

From her cowered position she stared at him, her eyes searching his face and eyes,"Who are you..? How do I know you..?"she asked squinting at him.

Slappy quirked his brow,"You really don't recognize me?"

"Oh my god.."Lizzy covered her mouth and gasped as she rose from the floor.

Slappy looked at her. "Hello, Lizzy."

Britany looked to Lizzy,"What? You know him?"

Lizzy strode up beside Britany. "How the hell are you human...!?"

"It's only an illusion. May I ask what the hell YOU'RE doing here?"he asked gesturing to all of her.

"I..."Lizzy couldn't believe it. She stared at him hard. "I came here to find YOU."

That did surprise him. "How did you know I would be here?"he asked suspiciously.

"Wait, is that_ Slappy_!?"Britany balked.

"Yes."she said sternly to her not breaking eye contact with Slappy. "I didn't know you'd be here. I came here to consult Britany since she was the only other person I knew of who's dealt with the likes of you."

"Holy crap, he's hot."Britany said wide eyed.

"Why, thank you."he said with a nod to Britany who blushed. She obviously hadn't meant to say that out loud. He turned his attention back the Lizzy," Why are you looking for me?"

Lizzy's demeanor became grim,"You have to go back to HorrorLand. You have to stop your brother."

"What?"he couldn't believe the coincidence.

Lizzy balled her fists at her sides,"I'll drag you there myself if I have to! I have someone I care about a lot there and he says you are the only one that can stop Wally. You're going whether you like it or not, so help me god!"she yelled at him in a passionate rage.

_How funny._

Slappy kicked at a stray car part on the floor,"Tch...don't go asking god for any favors. HorrorLand is a place where angels fear to tread these days." He gave an amused chuckle and looked at her sideways with an amused grin,"Honestly, 'you'll drag me back there yourself'? What do think will happen once we get there? I'll just show up and he'll hand my powers back to me?" Slappy asked her sarcastically.

"Time is running out. We have to do something or HorrorLand and all the horrors are finished."Lizzy began tearing up,"After that he's bringing the army of his living puppets to the human world to do the same thing."

Slappy sighed,"Tell me something I don't already know."

"How can you be so casual about this!? Wally is murdering, no, slaughtering all the horrors!"she yelled at him and feeling sick at her stomach. "Horrors who have families, and friends, and children! After being friends with Ned, I've found that they aren't much different from humans at all. You have to help!"

Slappy scoffed,"So it's Ned is it? He was always a sympathizer. Making things safer for humans and going on about having '_return customers'_ or some nonsense like that."

"Wally is YOUR BROTHER. YOUR RESPONSIBILITY."she cried angrily at him, furious at his attitude.

Slappy took a looming, challenging step at Lizzy,"Don't you dare try to give_ me_ orders!"he hissed through his clinched teeth at her.

Britany hugged her arm and stared up at him frightened.

Slappy's hard expression softened then he looked away from them. He put a hand on his hip and ran the other through his quaffed bangs,"Besides...I told you not to tell me anything I didn't already know."

Britany looked at Lizzy with the same slightly puzzled look she gave her. "Are you...sure you're really Slappy..?"she asked, confused by his new disposition.

Slappy rolled his eyes then snapped his fingers, instantly becoming his small dummy self. He held out his arms presenting himself,"Ta-da."

"Where's your suit?"Britany asked instantly.

Slappy sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose,"Amy threw it away. It's a long story."

"Wait..Amy?"Lizzy asked furrowing her brows. It had to be another Amy...

Slappy crossed his arms and coughed into his fist,"You...aren't my first slaves."

Both girls narrowed their eyes and glowered down at him,"How many are there..?"

"A...few."he said nervously. After thinking about it when Ray had brought it up the first time, he realized he had more around seven of eight out there.

"How many are a few?!"they asked in unison looking angrier.

Slappy backed away from them a few paces,"It's-it's none of your business!"he stammered. It was odd, if he didn't know better, he'd think they were acting jealous.

"Why you little whor-"Britany stop mid-insult and stared at the dream peeking through the door to the attic. "Whoa.."

Ray smiled at her and waved sheepishly from the doorway,"Sorry to interrupt." The three of them looked at him and he stepped in, then motioned behind him over his shoulder," Um..Slappy. We have a little situation downstairs."

Slappy frowned. "Amy?"

Ray nodded. "Amy."

Britany perked up,"Wait. Where are Molly and Margo?"

"With Amy. It's pretty bad."Ray said grimly.

With that Slappy hurried past Ray,"Amy?" he called as he trotted quickly down the stairs. As he entered the main house he could hear the coughing and retching. Slappy paused and made a disgusted face.

"I know."Ray said coming up beside him then followed the sound to the guest bathroom.

Slappy followed him and peered inside to see Margo holding Amy's hair back while Molly pressed a cloth to the back of Amy's neck. Margo noticed him and made the cutest angry face he'd ever seen. "How could let her do this!? Amy has a drinking problem! She's like a fish, she'll keep drinking until she explodes!"

"I'm not that bad.."Amy gurbled from the toilet.

"Amy, you're gonna die!"Margo cried near tears.

"I'm gonna die!?"Amy echoed.

"You aren't going to die."Slappy said and took Amy's phone out of his pocket to find it had shrunk with him and the rest of his clothing when he hand magiced himself small again. "Dammit.."he cursed under his breath then turned into his mannequin form. "I'm calling Dennis."

"NoOoOo!"Amy wailed and tried the crawl toward Slappy but was stopped by Margo in one of her rare acts of meanness who pulled her back by her hair.

"No mam', Amy! Let him call your cousin!"she scolded her.

Slappy laughed,"Your '_cousin_'? Ha...that's funny."he said as the phone began to ring then he started to pace the hall.

"But he'll be so mad.."Amy wined in the toilet before choking then vomiting again.

Slappy made another grossed out expression then noticed Lizzy and Britany staring at him with annoyed expressions. He looked back to Amy, then back to them,"Don't look at me like that! I had nothing to do with it! She did that to herself!"he said feeling defensive.

They both crossed their arms and stared at him.

"Amy?"Dennis said as he answered the phone.

"No. It's Slappy."he responded, glad to have a reason to walk away from the girls.

"What do you want? Is Amy okay?"he asked, his words laced with worry.

"No. She went by herself to go eat dinner at the hotel last night and came back drunk as hell."he said looking back toward the bathroom and Ray who was lingering outside it.

There was a moment of silence. "Did you let her sleep or did you get her to throw up?"

"Sleep. I didn't know she had a drinking problem."

"Shit...is she throwing up now?"he asked roughly.

"Yes."

"Okay...does it smell of alcohol or bile?"

"Um..."Slappy looked into the bathroom and pointed to Margo,"Does her puke smell like alcohol or bile?" There was no way he was going to intentionally smell any of that.

"She's throwing up yellow."Margo said worry stricken.

Slappy looked at her flatly,"I didn't ask color, I asked-"

"No, that's good to know. Put me on speaker."Dennis said loudly.

Slappy sneered at the phone. He didn't like being interrupted or being ordered around. "Fine."he said and set the phone on the bathroom sink. "You're on Dennis."

"Amy? Can she hear me?"Dennis asked.

"Don't be-"Amy was cut off by another gag heave.

"Are you seriously trying to kill yourself!? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is to drink at your age let alone BINGE DRINK!?"Dennis yelled through the phone, his voice echoing off the walls.

Amy groaned and whimpered into the toilet at being scolded so harshly.

"I'm sorry..I'll never do it again.."Amy said softly.

"You said that last time, Amy.."Margo sighed.

"It's okay. I'll be there soon, so stay on the phone with me until then."Dennis instructed them.

"What?"Slappy picked up the phone and took it off speaker. "What do you mean you'll be here soon?"

"Sooner than I thought. Open the door, I'm pulling up beside your car."he said.

"What!?"Slappy strode to the front door and sure enough, Dennis' Honda pulled up beside Action Bastard. Slappy walked out to meet him. "I thought you said you were going to stay? And how the hell did you find us!?"he asked only to hear the dial tone. Slappy huffed then watched as Dennis hopped down out of his car and approach him on the cobblestone walkway, medical case in hand.

"Show me to her."he commanded Slappy, not hesitating for explanations.

Slappy glared at him and crossed his arms,"I thought you said you were going to stay."Slappy repeated himself.

"Mrs. Kramer kicked me out, too. Now, where is Amy?"he said sternly as he pushed past Slappy.

Slappy watched him go inside then looked back at his car to see the backseat packed with boxes and books.

"Nevermind, I'll find her myself."Dennis growled as he stepped over the shattered glass at the threshold. "Amy!?"he called into the house.

"She's in here!"Ray called back.

"Another living dummy!?"Britany and Lizzy yelled.

"Denny! I'm sorry!"Amy yelled then began to dry heave.

"Ray, bring me water and a blanket!"Dennis yelled.

"Got it!"he yelled back.

"Eww..put that thing down, Brit!" Molly whined,"It's not a baseball bat, it's a mummified walrus penis!"

"OH, NASTY!"Britany screamed and flung the out the front door.

Slappy stared at the house and rubbed the back of his neck. This was turning into quite the party.


	31. Chapter 31

_**"RUN! DON'T STOP RUNNING!"**_

Her heart thudded in her chest wildly as she ran through the black hallway. Her various necklaces jingled around her throat and chest as she ran. Her silver bracelets acted as a handle to the young girl she was practically dragging behind her.

"I can't run any more miss!"the girl wailed then collapsed, dragging the young woman down with her.

"No! You can do it Madeline! Get up!" she gasped for breath as she tried desperately to pull the exhausted twelve year old to her feet. She could hear unnatural frantic footsteps coming at them quickly down the dark hall.

_Certain death. Dragged to the void. Nothing left behind._

Cold realization struck the woman. There wasn't time to get the girl to her feet. Desperately, she dug into the ragged satchel at her hip and threw a handful of white powder down the hall. "GET BACK! You can't have her!"

The powder dispersed in a shimmering while cloud that settled on an unseen, now halted, figure. What little moonlight trickled through the windows reflected brilliantly to her light starved amber eyes. The form of their assailant could be made out for the first time that night.

This wasn't a spirit.

"The ritual was wrong from the start...the ritual was wrong from the start!"she screamed in a horrified panic and in a feat of strength she picked Madeline up in her arms, then ran as fast as she could. The bone chalk wouldn't hold it back long and she only had half a handful left. She clung desperately to the crying girl in her arms and ran in a blind panic.

_"Oh god, help me! Somebody! Please!"_she screamed in her mind, feeling the cold jaws of Death Itself gnashing behind her.

The longer she ran the less she could tell what was real anymore.  
Was the the roaring coming from behind her or was it her own terrified mind?  
Was her body burning from the enormous strain of continuous running or freezing from the sheer terror racing through her veins at frigid chill in the air that accompanied the presence of death?  
What time was it?  
If the ritual was wrong to begin with, then what did that mean about the rules?  
Was she supposed to endure until after the three o' clock hour or until sunrise?  
Would this thing chase her again the next night or possibly forever if they managed to survive?  
_Was_ there any escaping?

She jumped over a fallen table in the kitchen and weaved through the broken chairs on the floor as she made a mad dash through the dinning room. She could hear the furniture being thrown and crushed against the walls behind them. He mind's eye flashed back to earlier that evening. There were seven of them at the beginning of the night. Now, there was only herself and the girl in her arms.

"Miss Amanda! I just want to go home!"petite Madeline wailed into Amanda's shoulder.

"You'll go home, Maddie. I promise." She charged into the estate library. "Maddie, you have to be brave for me now." Amanda reached in her pouch and stopped running.

The girl began to scream.

She pried the girl off her body. She pulled a little carton of salt from her pouch and pressed it into the frantic girl's hand. "Maddie, you have to run. Run and hide in one of the rooms of the house."she ordered her as calmly as she could. "Lock the door and pour this straight across the threshold, but save some. When you find your hiding place, pour a circle around yourself. Wait until sunrise, Maddie and do not leave your circle."

With that she shoved the crying girl down the dark hallway, plunged her hand back in her pouch, and turned to face the oncoming specter.

The house had suddenly gone silent aside from little Madeline's echoing footsteps and sobs.

Amanda stopped breathing and held perfectly still. The library looked empty...but she knew it was still there. Every molecule in her body felt it. Every hair on her body stood on end in it's presence. She could feel it...close. Her big amber eyes focused straight before her. Her long tight curls of dark cocoa hair clung to her sweat slick skin.

She knew it was there.

She couldn't see it...but..

Amanda threw her last handful of bone chalk only to have half of it blown back at her by the icy screech of the creature barely inches away. Amanda took off down the hall again, faster without Madeline.

She ran and ran and it chased her relentlessly for what seemed like hours.

In a haze she looked to the windows. The silhouette of trees draped with Spanish moss could be seen against the sky through the cracks in the curtains.

_Dawn._

It couldn't have come soon enough.

Amanda unintentionally slowed at the prospect of the protection of the sun.

She should have known better.

She suddenly found herself across the room in a pile of old books. The dust from them made her cough but for naught as her lungs felt as dry as her throat.  
_Had she really been running for hours...?_  
She tried to move but her body wouldn't obey.  
_How did she end up off her feet?_ _Had she been attacked or did she collapse of her own accord?_

The room began to dim even as the light grew stronger through the curtain slits.

It was there. Over her, perhaps admiring it's prize before dragging her off to some despicable doom. She knew she needed to get up, to run, to move, to cry or scream, anything but let herself be taken. Her body was weak and her blood pumped through her veins like molasses. Amanda lay there in the pile of books, defeated and worn down to her very end as the tiredness of the flesh consumed her. Her eyes shut and she felt the cold jaws of death close around her.

"Why don't we make a deal...?"a feminine voice purred through the darkness.

The jaws loosened and the last thing he heard before waking was an audible; "_YOU OWE ME._"

* * *

Ray woke up screaming her name. He could have sworn he'd been screaming all night in his dreams, but could never make a sound. She couldn't hear him. She couldn't see him. He couldn't do anything, but he had been there. This wasn't a nightmare. This was different.

Ray sat up in bed panting like he had been physically running all night. He couldn't hear himself but he was screaming illegible things completely out of his mind with panic.

Slappy came running into the room, a book in hand. He tossed it on the bed and quickly sat down on the bed beside him. He roughly grabbed him by the shoulders and began yelling at him. Ray could barely hear him.  
Everything sounded like he was underwater or very far away.

Dennis and Molly soon entered the room behind him and then a sickly looking Amy wrapped in a blanket.

"Calm down, Ray!"Slappy said with his arms wrapped tightly around him from behind.

"What's wrong!?"Molly asked.

"Just breathe."Slappy instructed him.

"It's a panic attack."Dennis answered.

"_Ray, you're safe_."Slappy reassured him quietly.

"It's okay... It's okay..."Amy said as she wrapped her arms around him, clinging tightly.

"Who's Amanda?"Molly asked.

Ray couldn't stop thrashing or saying her name. He finally just buried his face on Amy's shoulder and wept hysterically. His friends stayed close to him and watched helplessly as he fell apart.

* * *

If somebody reviews you all get another chapter tonight, yo.


	32. Chapter 32

Molly placed a large plate of fluffy scrambled eggs in the microwave to keep them warm while she waited for the biscuits to bake. She tiredly sighed and pulled the hair tie out of her loose ponytail, letting her copper curls fall over her shoulders.

Brittany walked into the kitchen in her pajamas with a messy bed head. "Goodmornin'!" she chirped and stole a piece of bacon from a plate on the counter. "I slept like a rock last night!"

Molly stared at her flatly. Brit could sleep through a hurricane.

The day before had been a massively eventful one that Molly, or anyone else present, would be slow to forget.

First; there was their reunion with Lizzy,a fellow Panic Park survivor, and her friend Margo. Although, she got the feeling they might be a little closer than that.

Secondly; they had a boisterous reunion with and an old enemy.  
Slappy the evil ventriloquist dummy!  
In a bizarre turn of events he turned out to be on_ their side_. They had attacked him at first, but then he explained his situation and ,after talking it over with the girls, she had permitted him AND his..interesting..other friends to stay with her.  
It was a funny thing, Slappy didn't seem as horrible as he was back when she met him in Panic Park. She supposed it had something to do with the troubled girl named Amy that he had brought with him, along with a ridiculously handsome young man named Ray.

Ray was quiet, but really cute.

Thirdly; they were surprised when Dennis, a _second_ living dummy, arrived. He seemed to have medical training, which struck her as very odd. Almost as odd as the whole 'living dummy' thing to begin with.

After that the night progressed and they all settled in. Amy, Slappy, and Dennis shared a room while she, Brittany, Lizzy and Margo shared a room. Slappy pretty much ordered Ray to sleep alone in her dad's room because '_of reasons_'.

It was fine until he woke up a little after four in the morning screaming like a banshee and hysterically crying. It had been really scary, but Slappy jumped in and calmed him down. Slappy actually stayed up with him after that. He put him to work, of course and had him help decipher some texts in the alleged magic books her father had in his library.

Molly took the orange juice out of the refrigerator. "Dennis, would you mind driving us to the airport? My father should be here by six tonight."

Over at the breakfast nook Dennis quickly looked up from his laptop and blinked in surprise. "I..well..I'd love to."he said, not lack of bewilderment in his voice. "It's the least I can do after you've been so generous to let us stay, but.."he hesitated to point out his greatest literal short coming,"..I can't change my appearance like Slappy can. I'm stuck like _this_."he said motioning to his body.

She could tell it was something he wasn't particularly pleased about. "Oh. Well I suppose you would have by now if you could.."she said thoughtfully.

"I usually pass myself of as a small person, but that's when I had this get-up I wore.."he waved his hands at his face obscurely,"..it was like painted pantyhose..but not really?"he said as more of a question than an explanation. "I'm embarrassed now.."he sighed then ducked back behind his laptop screen.

Brittany laughed. "Don't worry about it! Molly's dad would probably get a huge kick outta' having a real living dummy pick him up! He's a HUGE supernatural dork like that."

Molly placed the juice on the table and sighed. "It's true. He likes his weird stuff more than he does me sometimes..."she said with a dejected pout before walking over to the oven to check on the biscuits.

Brittany crossed her arms and furrowed her eye brows,"That's what makes HIM a dork..." she said with a sneer.

Dennis' heart melted. He felt sorry for her. He knew all too well what it felt like to be shunned by someone you loved...and you thought loved you back. "I'll take you to the airport."he said kindly. He closed his laptop with a sigh.

Brittany was about to smack Molly on her rear while she was checking the oven, but stopped at the apex of her swing when she saw Dennis looking down at the table with a distant look in his glass eyes."Something wrong, buddy?"

Dennis glanced up with a look of contrition then back down at his small hands. "I'm sorry for my behavior. I'm not usually like this."

"Huh?"both girls said in unison. Molly straightened back up and looked at him with a perplexed expression.

"The way I was _yelling_ yesterday and how grouchy I was. Even now, I still feel out of sorts." He glanced back up again and gave them a pathetic smile,"I had a bad day the day before and I'm still a bit shell shocked from it."

She had overheard some of Dennis conversations with Slappy yesterday evening and picked up on that he had been kicked out of his home with Amy. She felt so badly for him.  
"What? We don't think that."Molly said and walked over and sat down beside him. She hugged the surprised dummy against her chest. "You were just upset because of your friend."she said holding him close and planting her cheek in his soft hair that smelled faintly of caramel candies.

Dennis relaxed and leaned into her hug but didn't reciprocate. "Thank you."

"I can't believe you and Slappy are the same creatures. You're so different...you're like..the _anti-Slappy_."Brittany commented then started taking out some plastic plates from the cabinet.

"Brit! We have guests! Don't use plastic plates!"Molly scolded her, loosening her hold on Dennis.

Brittany made a face at her. "I don't do dishes."

Molly snickered. "You hate cleaning all together. It's like you're allergic."she teased.

Dennis smiled and patted Molly's arm to get her attention. "I'd be happy to help you with the dishes."

Molly looked down at him. "You're a guest! I couldn't let you to do that."

"I insist."he responded sounding a little more lighthearted.

"Wow, you are so freaking _nice_.."Brittany said sincerely as she collected the stoneware pates "I can't believe anyone would ever want to throw you out like yesterday's garbage!"

Dennis flinched.

"_BRIT_!"Molly shrieked sharply enough that it made Brittany nearly jump out of her skin and drop the plates.

"What!?"she asked as she steadied the plates on her arm. She looked over and saw the deranged look Molly was giving her, then Dennis. "Oh..Oh man! I didn't mean it like that!"she blathered, trying to make up for her careless words.

"It's okay. You aren't that far off.."he said trying to sound jovial. He started at his feet that never seemed to reach the ground in silence and gave one a little kick.

"What happened?"Molly asked feeling concerned by the hurt in his words.

Dennis rubbed his arm. "Nothing. I don't want to bother you with my problems."

"Look, you have to tell us now."Brittany said and started laying out plates on the table for breakfast, then finished with one in front of him. "C'mon. It might make you feel better."she said as she pulled up a chair and sat down across from him.

Dennis stared at the grey stone plate set before him. "Maybe."

Molly pushed a tufft of soft hair behind his wooden ear. "Please?"

"I'm so sorry."he apologized, feeling guilty for making them care about his problems."I'm such a mess right now."

"Just get on with it! If we didn't want to know we wouldn't ask."Brittany said impatiently, but in a good humor. That still did save her from another scathing look from her friend.

Dennis sighed. Maybe it would make him feel better.

"I'm attending medical school."he said, realizing how odd it sounded when one considered what he was. "It's been a complicated process with no small amount of trickery, for lack of a better term, but I've managed this far. I suppose when people are presented with the unbelievable, they're more willing to believe a lie."Dennis noted.  
"I'm studying to be an registered nurse. I'm going in for training now, sometimes sporadically." he illustrated with a fickle flip-flop of his hand. "Well, I went in early on Monday morning for a full training shift. I was gone all day, then, when I got home that evening, I found all of my things had been boxed up and left on the front porch."  
Dennis looked deeply puzzled as he relived the moment,"I tried to open the front door but the lock had been changed. So, then I knock on the door. No answer... I ring the door bell..Same thing." He paused and slumped his shoulders, slowly leaning back on the wooden bench. He folded his hands over his lap.  
He sat thoughtfully for a moment, his big brown eyes a bit glassier than usual.  
He made a sound like a sharp inhale of breath then continued,"I'm suddenly wondering if I'm losing my mind when my phone rings and when I answer, it's Amy's mother. You know, I didn't know what to think,"he said with a raise of his up turned hands in a semi shrug,"..so I start asking if everyone is alright, '_is everyone safe_', and '_why can't I get in the house_'."  
Dennis blinked a few times then placed his hands back on his lap, cupping them, and idly massaged the middle of his wooden left palm with his right thumb.  
"She let's me know that 'I need to go'. And, of course, my first thought is '_go where_?'." Dennis gave a lackluster laugh that died quickly. Dennis clasped his hands together as if he were about to say a prayer. His voice softened and he closed his eyes.  
"Then she told me something she had been meaning to say for a long time...that she never liked me. Even before I became aware,for lack of a better word. She explained that she had never liked dolls growing up and that it wasn't anything personal, she just had never supported the idea of getting Amy a dummy in the first place. I was a tragic mistake. She said she was sorry that the family had to endure the past few years of turmoil, because she hadn't put her foot down the day Amy's father had...brought..me home."  
Dennis drew his legs up and loosely wrapped his arms around them. He rested his head on his knees. "Basically, she was inferring that if it weren't for me, the whole 'Slappy-incident' would never have happened.."he stated with little emotion left in his voice. "Then she told me Amy was gone and there was no longer a reason for me to be there." Dennis picked at a stray lint ball on the knee of his pants then flicked it away," I, intent on humiliating myself, asked if there was anyone else there that needed me. They got on the phone, but.."he couldn't find his words for a cold few moments, then his voice broke when he spoke again," she...just told me to leave too...in so many words." Dennis closed his eyes and hugged his legs a little tighter.

Of course the actual exchange between he and Sara hadn't been that simple or nice. She had been unimaginably hurtful, demeaning, and callous in a way he had never known her to be.

The girls were silent. They hadn't expected a story like that and now they didn't know what to say to the little doll that looked so sad.

"I wish I could cry." he said with a distant look in his eyes when he opened them. "When people get upset they get to cry, but I..."Dennis paused then scoffed and stared off at the wall, trying to divorce himself from his bitterness,"..I just hurt."

Brittany knew that at some point she had developed the uncanny ability to make awkward situations worse and right then she really hated it. "God, man...I'm sorry. I didn't think it was like that."

"Did she really do that to you, Denny?"Amy asked from the other end of the kitchen, her voice unusually soft.

Dennis looked at her, then hid his face in shame against his folded arms on top of his knees. "I didn't want you to see me like this...please go back to bed, Amy."

Amy blinked away some tears. "It wasn't your fault."she said then walked closer. "You know it wasn't your fault don't you?"  
She knew her mother and Sara could be ultra-bitches, but not so cruel and never in a million years did she think they would do it to Dennis of all people.  
"You never did anything wrong, Dennis. You never do."she insisted as she walked to the end of the table to get close to him. "All you ever do are nice things.."Amy's voice hitched. She didn't want to cry. It would be so insensitive to cry now, but she couldn't help it.  
"You didn't deserve that, Denny." She sat beside him and brushed a hand through his hair.

Dennis slapped her hand away.

Amy's wrist stung from the sharp rejection. She stared at him with baleful eyes.

"Don't."  
His arm was still raised but he was still huddled into himself. He couldn't stand her touch. After what happened, then following her all the way to Boston, only to find her in the state she was in...he had needed her then but now it was too late. He gently nudged Molly who got up so he could get of the bench. He just wanted to get away from Amy. She had disappointed him one too many times.

"Dennis, I'm-" Amy started to say.

"No."Dennis cut her off before she could say another word. "You're not sorry, Amy. You'd do it again...because you are selfish." He turned and looked her in the eye,"You are no different from them. All you do is take." Dennis didn't care if his words hurt her. He hoped they did. For once he could return some of the pain she had carelessly caused him. "The reason you and your mother get along so poorly is because you are so much alike. You're both stubborn and simpleminded in your own ambitions. Neither of you care who you hurt, we're all just collateral damage."

"That is NOT true!" Amy said fiercely.

"Even you and Sara are the same. All I really am to either of you is a just a doll. You take me off the shelf when you're scared or hurt, then once the crisis is over and I've got you put back together, you go on your merry way and only come back when you've been shattered again. As if my only function in life is to comfort and take care of you."

"That isn't entirely true..."Amy all but whispered.

Dennis gave her a derisive look, "I know it sounds whiny, but I have feelings too. And you've trampled them for the last time."

Amy looked at him with a pleading expression,"You never said anything."

Dennis eyes widened,"I did! You never listened,Amy! I obviously don't matter at all! I guess I shouldn't since I'm so easily replaceable. Sara has all her _'friends'_ or _'patrons'_ and you have Slappy. God, it just kills me that the moment you got him I was so much trash to you!"

"You weren't trash."Amy said sadly. "I kept you."

"Why?"he asked sharply.

Amy but her lip then blinked, causing tears to roll down her cheeks."Because I love you."

"You have a funny way of showing it."he said and turned to walk away.

"I'm s-"Amy stopped herself. She had said those words so many times that they had lost all their meaning. "I'll do better, Dennis. I really didn't know I was hurting you."

"I'm with your mother. I wish I had never come to you." After he said it, he knew he didn't mean it. He took a few steps then turned slightly,"Molly. I'll take you to pick up your father tonight. After that I'll be going. Thank you for your hospitality."

"You don't have to."she said softly.

"I really don't mind."he said feeling embrassed about his scene with Amy.

"No. I mean..you don't have to leave. You could stay."she said with a small hopeful smile. Poor guy didn't have anywhere_ to_ go.

He looked to Amy then back to Molly. "It'd be for the best if I go." With that Dennis walked away to somewhere in the house.

Amy sat in sad silence. Her head spun with all his words and she dwelt on each one.

Brittany couldn't hold back anymore. "What moron would trade Dennis for Slappy?"she asked incredulously.

Molly groaned and smacked her friend in the arm.

"Ouch...what!?"Brittany asked as she rubbed her arm.

"Stop saying the first thing that comes to your mind, Brittany."she quietly scolded her.

Amy sniffled then got up and walked away.


	33. Chapter 33

Slappy yawned, then looked up from his book and rubbed his tired eyes. He grunted as he stretched out his small joints. After that, he leaned back on his elbows on the massive,plush floor pillow Molly had brought him to sit on as he studied all the old texts. He smiled at the thought of the girl. She had been quite accommodating and complied to all his requests obediently without question, save for what alcoholic spirits he preferred. When this was all over he would be sure to pay her another visit.

Slappy stretched out his relatively long dummy legs in front of him and twiddled his toes in his socks. "Ahhh..."he sighed pleasurably. He was feeling much better now. Things really seemed to be going his way at the moment.

"You look like a happy house cat."Lizzy commented from across the room wearing a sly smile.

"Better than a nerd, four eyes."he joked back to her.

Lizzy took off her thick rimmed, black glasses, set down one of her tablets and pushed her laptop to the side so she could mimic Slappy's leisurely pose. "This does feel good, blockhead."

Slappy grinned at her. He didn't mind her insults. In the past twenty four hours he had developed an odd liking for her company. While he researched the books Lizzy researched old library archives and the like. Lizzy was a girl of results, as he should have expected by the record breaking time it took her to get rid of him. He had to admit that he never saw it coming when she threw him off the roof of her school and into a wood chipper. "Have you found anything else interesting?"he asked her as he stood up to go retrieve a new book.

"Yes."she responded leaning her head back letting her loose hair flow to the floor pillow she was occupying. "I think I found Amanda."

Slappy stopped. "Show me."he said and rerouted straight to her little camp.

Lizzy sat up with a grunt then stood up and did a few stretches,"There's a little shop down in New Orleans that specializes in the occult and the supernatural. They also make shoes, go figure."she relayed with a strained little chuckle as she arched her back, making it crack like popcorn.

Slappy crouched down at the laptop and moved the touch pad around checking her tabs. Lizzy plopped back down on the pillow behind him. "Not there."she said then swept him backwards onto her lap.

Slappy went wide eyed and tensed up in her lap. She was quite warm and he seemed to fit her quite well like this. Lizzy reached for a tablet she had pushed aside and two modest mounds of softness pillowed the back of his head. He felt a familiar stirring and quickly crossed his legs and arms, then reclined against her trying to appear nonchalant as she held the tablet up for him to view.

"Her name is Amanda Benson, right?"Lizzy said as she entered her password almost lightning fast.

"Yes." he replied watching her nimble fingers work. Even with a distraction, he managed to focus and memorize Lizzy's pass code for future reference.

"She graduated high school three years ago then moved to New Orleans. She attended The University of New Orleans for a year, but hasn't re-enrolled. According to her brother's social network sites she works at a holistic living market, but when I ran the name he gave all I could find was a cobbler's shop. So I dug further and found a rabbit trail that lead to an encrypted blog. It's some kind of journal and a lot of the entries have to do with corrections and additions to some of the popular horror memes going around the open internet right now. Some they flat out debunk, then some they give deeper descriptions of their experience, as if they really tried them. Other than that it's a bunch of recipes for potions and reviews on certain ingredients in them. Kinda like a chef's blog, really."Lizzy said as she retraced all her hours of work in the span of a minute. She came to her final page and scrolled through the pages stopping on the newest entry. "This latest entry was posted an hour ago. You can tell me if it sounds familiar to what Ray told you he saw."

_**"Last night went terribly wrong. I have never had a ritual turn like that. The local children had these little charm games they were playing with. They said they could summon an elemental spirit to play with until three in the morning. I volunteered to chaperone the sleep over just to make sure everything would be okay. There was a requirement of seven players for the game. We wrote our middle names on triangles of paper, then stacked them and tore them in half. We shuffled them, then each of us chose a piece at random from youngest to oldest to compile the name of the entity. By all appearances it seemed it was a fake ritual, something silly to do on sleepovers to scare everyone into staying up all night. It was on loose leaf paper for crying out loud. But...it worked. At midnight I sat with the children and we called the spirit thirteen times. I was just babysitting. I didn't expect for anything to happen. I had thought it failed. A spirit was summoned but I didn't realize it until the children began to go missing. By 2:00am only the youngest and I were still left. We tried to escape but the doors and windows were shut tight and some supernatural force made them unbreakable. We were forced to run for our lives until the little one collapsed. I had some bone chalk and a small carton of salt in my pouch. I stunned it for a moment with the chalk, but the chalk also made it visible for a short time. It was a Cu sith. How did we summon a Cu sith...? I had the little one hide and protect herself with the salt while I drew the death it after me. I nearly ran myself to death. Just before dawn I collapsed and I thought I was done for, but my Sour Puss saved me and the children. I suppose I'm further in her debt now..." -**_** posted 4:45pm EST**

"So what do you think?"Lizzy asked him after giving him time to read.

Slappy though a moment. "It seems to fit what I got out of Ray."he said leaning into her comfortably. "I'm glad the girl is still alive. It would be problematic if she died." He knew Ray would not only be upset, but he would be up for grabs to whoever could claim him first, sans the 'death-do-you-part' clause in most human/demon agreements.  
Ownership in the demon community was a damned tedious thing. Slappy did not want to have to fight Dawes for Ray.

"Good job, slave."he said giving her thigh a pat.

Lizzy sat up quickly sending Slappy scrabbling forward. "I'm not your slave nor will I ever be, Slappy. You know that."

"Can't blame a guy for trying."he said with a wry smile, dusting his slacks off.

Lizzy gave him a criticizing look, then looked out the attic window. "Hey, isn't that Dennis leaving?"she said pointing to the white Honda sedan pulling out of the driveway. Slappy stepped up beside her in his mannequin form to watch Dennis leave. She couldn't help but stare at him. It was a little disorienting to see him like this again after spending all day with him in his dummy form. "Where do you think he's going?"she asked moving a little closer.

"They're going to pick up Molly's father at the airport."he stated watching as the car turned left at the end of the road. "He'll be back."

"Would you like to take a breather and get something to drink?"she asked.

"Molly is out of cognac."he said glancing down at her, his ultramarine eyes catching the glare of the lowering sun.

"Oh okay." Lizzy stuck a hand in her pocket and the other fiddled with her suspender. "Back to work I guess..."she said feeling a little disappointed.

"You could go with me to get some more."he suggested, staring at the long shadows on the ground outside. He turned to her,"I'll buy you a milkshake."

Lizzy smiled,"Sounds good. Brain food."

"You're a little skinny. I'll buy you two."he joked as they walked together to the door.

"Look who's talking, slim."she jibbed at him, poking him in the torso. He held the door open for her and they descended the stairs to the main house.

As the door closed behind them a new message from MonsterX arrived on Lizzy's phone.

The screen read in illuminated letters," One New Message Received from MONSTER-X : "He's watching you."

* * *

Amy and Ray lay in bed together. Amy was face down across the bed still in her pajamas and Ray,only wearing a pair of jeans, lay on his back staring up at the ceiling, looking very forlorn.

Slappy's eye twitched. "What the hell is wrong with you two?"

Amy turned her head,seemingly with great effort, so she could reply clearly. "We're depressed."she said through her curtain oh hair.

Slappy walked over to the nightstand and took the keys to Action Bastard."Well, get over it."he said pausing to fix his human illusion's hair in a mirror.

"It isn't that easy."Ray said in monotone.

"Amanda is still alive. Stop wallowing in self pity, already. Both of you need to man up."he said feeling quite weary of their emotional episodes.

Ray smiled thankfully as a wave of relief washed over him. He had felt that she was still alive, but hearing it from Slappy gave him closure on the matter. But that was only half the reason for his current state. His smile faded and he started unblinking at the ceiling once more. "I couldn't have done anything for Amanda last night even if I had been there. I can't control my inner demon, I barely know anything about what I am or this other world I'm supposed to be a part of. I'm useless outside of the bedroom."he said looking terribly grim.

"I under appreciated my dearest friend and ignored his feelings to the point I drove him away, because I'm my mom."Amy added miserably.

Slappy sneered. This really disgusted him. They were really pathetic when he thought about it. After spending a calm productive day with what Amy would probably call 'Team Lizzy', he was seriously thinking of switching teams. Lizzy was passionate,but not over zealous. She was intelligent, calculating, capable, and enjoyable to be around. More than anything else, Lizzy, Britany, and Molly were stable and self-reliant. He didn't have to babysit them or worry about..incidents.

Just then, Slappy realized that he _had all the magic books he had needed_, he didn't actually _need_ Amy or Ray anymore.

"Well...you...think about that...umm, _have fun_."he said as he backed out of the room.

"Okay."Amy said and gave him a tiny wave.

Slappy closed the door and shuddered. Even with all the trouble he'd gone through for them, he really didn't want anything to do with those losers anymore. He had only been with them out of desperation from the start.

"Ready to go?"Lizzy asked from the front door sounding chipper.

He smiled at her. "After you."he said charmingly.

* * *

Amy sighed deeply as she heard the front door close. She tried to blow her hair out of her face five times before she gave up. "I'm a terrible person. How could I not see it before?"she asked no one in particular.

"You've never killed anybody."Ray said softly.

"Not on purpose, anyway."she replied.

Ray wasn't going to ask. "I'm still worse the worst. I...assaulted Slappy."

Amy shrugged her shoulders. "It's okay, you were stuck in bad ass mode. It all ended okay and watching you throw cars like that was really cool."

"No. At the hotel."he corrected.

Amy was confused. "You guys got in a fight?"

"No. We nearly had sex."

Amy pushed herself up sluggishly from the mattress. Her clothes were disheveled,her hair was a wilder mess than usual, and her face was pale and puffy at the same time from crying. "Whaaaaaaat...the fuck, Ray!?"she asked him seriously interested in the answer.

"I forced myself on him." Ray covered his face with his hands. "But he wasn't..._I just_...I fucked up so bad, Amy! I don't know what's wrong with me!"

Amy narrowed her eyes at him. Was he serious? She just couldn't imagine him and Slappy together. "Well..you kinda made out with me, too, so I can't be too upset. Not that I am. He's not my boyfriend or anything..."she said irritably, scratching her tummy.

"It wasn't like with us, Amy. I think I hurt him, but he just wants to forget it ever happened. I can't do that. I feel like I'm dieing inside from the guilt."he confessed staring at the ceiling with his hands fisted in his hair. "I stopped after the blow job, but the damage was done. I thought he was into it."

"You what...you did..whaaat!?"she asked shocked as hell. "How?!"

Ray looked at her slowly, confused. "Um..the usual way?"

Amy's mouth hung open making her look crazier than ever. "Slappy has a weenie!?"Amy almost screamed, completely missing the point of Ray's angst.

Ray stared at her. She really didn't know? That was kind of adorable. Ray laughed mirthlessly at her reaction. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew."

"No! Oh my god! How long!?"she asked completely flabbergasted.

Ray felt like he could blush. "I'd guess..seven and a half inches at least...?"he said.

Amy's eyes widened as that information sank in. "No, Ray! How long has he _had it_!? I don't want to know how long it is!"she shrieked in a girly airy way, turning bright pink.

"You weren't specific!"he cried back defensively then covered his face again. "Apparently, I'm a terrible pervert and that's where my mind is going to go first, Amy."he said becoming frustrated with himself all over again.

Amy grabbed onto Ray's bicep and shook him. "Oh my god...do you think Dennis has one!?"Amy asked Ray looking like a frazzled mess.

Ray made a blank face at the thought. He frowned at the ceiling. "From here on out, let's promise to stop giving each other terrible mental images."

Amy stared at the wall with an expression somewhere between enlightenment and disgust. "I am in shock. Man, it is so weird how one little body part can change everything. My mind is totally blown right now, Ray."

Ray shifted his legs and laid his arms on the pillow above his head. He looked a fairly bad mess himself. "Are you mad? Do you hate me?"

"Huh...?"Amy looked at him feeling dazed but she thought about. "Meh. I guess I should be honest with you..and myself..."she sighed. "I think I have a thing for Slappy." Amy said to Ray with a look of confusion. "The creepy part being that was BEFORE he got all tall and manly. It figures I'd have a thing for possessed dolls and not actual boys. Aside from you,"Amy added and poked him in the armpit," but I think everybody has a thing for you, Ray."

"Ngh-!"Ray shimmied away from tickling poke. "I can't help that. It has something to do with what I am. At least that's what Slappy told me."he said rubbing his smooth underarm.

Amy flopped over onto the pillow beside Ray. "I'd like to think I'd still like you if you were butt-ugly."

Ray laughed,"I'd hope so, too." He was glad Amy was here with him. "But...I think I hurt Slappy. I think I almost raped him."he said as he lowered his arm between them on the bed.

Amy made a 'slow down' motion with her hands. "Whoa, whoa. Okay, you said you stopped, right?"

"Yeah, but it should have been sooner. He didn't want me to touch him like that at all."

Amy stared intently at Ray. "What happened?"

Ray took a deep breath. "I came to the hotel room and when Slappy answered the door something seemed off. I could smell arousal on him and-"

Amy stopped him. "EW. Ok, no..nevermind. No more details."

"I was like a shark with blood in the water."Ray said in sad wonder.

"And you ate his dick." she added.

"This is serious, Amy."

"I know, I'm sorry. I don't want to think of you as a bad guy, Ray."she lamented.

"But I am." Ray thought back to all the people he turned or flat-out killed in his past as the watcher in Dark Falls. "Amy, I'm a murderer."

Amy tucked in closer to him. She rested her cheek on his shoulder and placed her right hand on his cool chest. "I just can't think of you that way, Ray."

Reality made him feel heavy with the weight it held. "I'm so much older than you, I just don't look it."

Amy shook her head against his shoulder. "I don't care. I never knew the Ray you used to be. I only know who you are right now and I love him a lot."

He closed his eyes as the ache of her words cracked a wall surrounding his heart. "Why..?"

"Because you're my friend. I know you don't have a bad heart. You made a bad mistakes, but it isn't like you haven't tried to make it right?"

Ray turned his head and looked at her sadly. There was nothing he could do about what he did in Dark Falls. "I apologized to Slappy once I realized what I had done, but he won't talk to me about it. I didn't mean to hurt him. I just thought...no.._I didn't think._ I guess that was the way it happened to me, so I thought it was okay."

Amy looked into his misery filled eyes, feeling deeply concerned. She drew closer against him, holding to him. "Someone...did what you did to Slappy, to you...?"

Ray's memory flashed back to the day it happened. The difference was that Compton didn't stop. Tears rolled over the bridge of his nose and down his other cheek, wetting the pillow. "..I don't want to talk about it.."he said in a hushed voice.

Amy sat up enough to place a kiss on his forehead. "I'm sorry, Ray."

Ray closed his eyes. He turned onto his side and pulled her into an embrace before she could nestle in beside him again. His face was pressed into her collarbone and he breathed her in.

Amy slowly raked her fingers through Ray's soft hair trying to comfort him. "Okay."

After a while Amy started to think Ray had fallen asleep. She sighed softly and spoke aloud to herself. "I really fucked things up with Dennis. I don't know how to fix it."she said feeling melancholy while she lazily twisted a wave of blonde hair around her finger.

Ray stopped her hand and instead entangled her fingers with his. "I wish I knew what to tell you to do."

Amy was happy he was still awake. "What if he never comes back? I don't wanna let it end like this, but after the way I treated him..I don't have a leg to stand on to make him stay."

Ray made a humming noise, then propped himself up on an elbow so he could be eye level with her again. "I didn't think you treated him all that bad. I got that you genuinely care about him. You're just being young and you."

Tears stung her eyes and she sniffled again,"Thanks."Amy wiped her eyes with the cuff of her flannel sleep top. "I can let this go though. I have to understand why he's so hurt, because I'm still not sure_ exactly_ what I did that hurt him so badly."

Ray ran his knuckles across the curve of her cheek. "Are you sure it's only you he's mad at? I mean your mom was the one who threw him out, right?"

"Yeah but, I do keep getting hurt and causing him worry and trouble."

"I thought he preferred tending to you himself?"Ray said thoughtfully, referring back to a few nights ago with the stab wound incident. "He could just as easily let you go to the emergency room and let somebody else do it."

"That's true...,"she admitted," but do you think I was ungrateful towards him? Do you think that's why he's leaving?" Amy caught his wrist as it left her cheek. She pressed her palm flat with his and wondered at the size difference.  
"Because you're right...he didn't have to. He must have done it because..."  
Amy suddenly got it. Something obvious that she never fully appreciated until now when it was gone.  
"..because he really did loved me. And I really did just take him for granted...I'm a terrible person!"Amy turned her face into the mattress and started bawling.

"No you're not..."Ray said soothingly to her. He rubbed her back while she cried. "It's kinda funny that you're more upset about losing him than you are about losing the rest of your family and your home."

Amy looked at him all red faced and wet-eyed,"It's not funny at all, Ray! I'm sad, dammit."

"I'm sorry."he sighed, feeling stupid. "I'm no good at this."

"It's okay."she relented. Amy pressed her body closer to his. "You're just trying to make it better, sorry I snapped at you."

"Don't feel too bad about yourself." Ray exhaled and dropped a kiss in her messy hair. "You're not the one getting turned on by this."

Amy choked on a laugh,"What? No you're not."

He groaned,"I can't help it."

"It's like we're both going through puberty."Amy said passively.

It was as if lightning struck. They both laid there in a moment of clarity.

"Oh, goddammit. It- it _is_ puberty. No wonder I can't keep my head on straight."Ray said realizing that for all intents and purposes his 'budding demon-hood' and sudden growth as of late were the same thing. It also added a whole new depth to Compton's creepiness since he had been essentially keeping Ray a thirteen year old for almost three decades.

"Puberty is a disgusting word. I thought I was done since my boobs stopped growing, but I guess not."Amy said in utter resentment to the biologic process. "This sucks."

"I suppose it's time for us both to grow up."he said running a hand through her tangled mane, strands popping as he passed through them.

Amy sighed and went boneless against him.

Ray blinked at her and smirked. "You like that, huh?"

"YAS."she said feeling like a goof. "It's my Achilles heel. Abuse it if you like."

Ray laughed. "You're funny."

"Funny 'ha-ha' or funny 'call the police'?"she asked, referencing the first time they met.

Ray suddenly became serious. He cupped his hand to her cheek and looked into her eyes. "Funny as in 'I'm really glad I met you'."

Amy smiled back at him and blushed. "Aww, Ray."she pushed his bangs away from his perfect blue eyes then leaned in and gave him a peck on the lips. "You wanna grow up together?"she asked.

Ray smiled broadly feeling warm all on his own,"I'm in for the home stretch if you are."

Amy returned his warm smile,"Always."

They giggled stupidly for a moment then looked at each other again.

"We're a couple of misfits aren't we?"Ray asked.

"Yeah, but I like it."Amy said then sat up.

"Hey, Amy."

"Yeah?"

"You really need a bath. I'm sorry, you still smell kinda like cinnamon puke."he said with a nervous laugh.

"Shut up!"she yelled and pretended like she was going to hit him. "I meant to, but I got distracted!"she laughed.

He grinned and sat up on his elbows,"I'd join you but being all hormonal and everything, It'd probably be a bad idea."

Amy a gave a bark of laughter. "No it'd be great." she pointed to his crotch,"I'd have somewhere to hang my wash cloth."

Ray motion grandly to his lap,"Wash cloth? You could hang your entire towel if you liked!"he said in his best impersonation of a t.v. announcer.

Amy snorted when she laughed,"I have a pretty big towel."

He smirked,"I have a pretty big dick."

Amy covered her mouth when she laughed,"I know you do, I saw it, ya perv!"she said in playfully accusing way.

"I'm sorry about that. I've given you unreal expectations."

Amy rolled her eyes,"Okay, Ray..."she said as she got off the bed.

"Seriously, don't be too disappointed on your wedding night."he said as he watched her look through her suitcases. "I'm actually bigger than Slappy, by the way."

"PFFFTT!" Amy did a dry spit take then pulled her orange towel from her small duffel bag. "Don't tell me that! I don't want to know about Slappy's hard-wood, thank you much!"

"He might have one as a dummy too."Ray suggested to her.

"Oh god, Ray! Stop it!"Amy shrieked as she tossed bottles of shampoo and conditioner into a small orange and green bag.

"It'd be _a lot_ smaller though.."he said tapping his chin in feigned thoughtfulness.

"GAH!" Amy tossed a balled up pair of blue socks at him,"I thought we agreed to stop giving each other terrible mental images!"she laughed.

Ray deflected the soft projectile and laughed," But this is fun."

"You're a sadist."she said tossing her towel over her shoulder.

"No, I'm a pervert."he said smiling. "Go get your bath, Amy."

Amy shook her head smiling as she left the room with her towel and small bag of stuff.


	34. Chapter 34

It was always quiet after a reaping.

They had put up a real fight this time.

He gasped in deep breaths, drawing in life and exhaled shuddering wheezes as he trembled. In his powerful grip a black glistening whip quivered sending spatters of blood with every tremor. Steam rose in the dark ravine from the bodies of those who had chosen to die rather than become slaves to his master.

He didn't have such a luxury.

Jackson adjusted his stance and the snow beneath his filthy boot crunched, being more ice than snow. The whole canyon floor was a contrast of black stone,white snow, and a mix of red and green blood. Bodies of werewolves, vampires, and monsters of all breeds littered the landscape. Even a collection of living puppets lay dismembered and permanently decommissioned among the fallen. Jackson cleared his throat then coughed. The lost dolls were of little consequence to him. After watching so many violent deaths at the hands of those things, he took some small solace in the destruction of each one. Just knowing they could be stopped was an ether all itself.

Speaking of which...

Jackson reached around to his back, his hands a pallet of dried and fresh blood, and pulled out a loop of burnt chains. They trembled in his quaking hand making the smallest of noise, then he gave the chains a strong shake. The sound of chains resounded off the chasm walls. Once the echo died, Jackson repeated the action again. Quiet stirrings gave rise to the sounds of footsteps.

The march of the dolls had begun.

Fallen creatures rose to their feet as if they were being lifted into the air, tethered, by invisible strings. The hung in the air for a moment then hisses escaped them before the magic was complete. They would drop when it was done, then take their first steps as mindless, soulless slaves.

Their movements were staggered and clockwork-like, wholly unnatural, and something he was sadly becoming accustomed to. They came to him and waited for his orders. Some came uncomfortably close, stopping inches before him, as if some piece of their soul still lingered near the surface, intent on showing him their displeasure.

He had become accustomed to that as well.

Jackson had a habit of keeping count of how many living puppets he created as well as the monsters he killed. It was his own laughable way of acknowledging their previous existence. One hundred and thirty three. That was his reaping this time. It was a modest amount in comparison to his usual three hundred or so when he found camps like this. Still, it barely compensated the losses he sustained. He supposed that was due to the push back this time.

Most of them died, it couldn't be helped.

One last shake of the chains and all the new slaves were assembled. Jackson placed the chains on his belt behind his back, then he wrapped up his long scaled whip. He turned it over at least twenty times, sealing it around it's foot long handle until he came to the surgically sharp spurs at the frayed end. He stuffed the device of torture and punishment into it's holster on his right thigh then took a moment to search his body for any infectious bites.

"Oh no, not again.."he said in a very hushed voice to himself as he pulled back his cloak. He had been bitten by a werewolf. The wound was dripping blood through his reinforced leather bracers. That was the problem with fighting desperate monsters. They had nothing left to lose and that made them all the more dangerous. That meant things got very messy and it became difficult to tell whose blood was whose. "Oh come on..."he sighed as he found two more bites on his left leg and wrist. He searched his cloak and produced some blue linen wraps from a hidden pocket. With that he sat on a flat black rock and removed his damaged armor. "Christ..."he hissed in pain as he peeled away his boot and bracers. This was only a temporary fix. Jackson tensed as he wrapped the wounds. As soon as the blood absorbed into the bandages they squeezed the skin shut painfully, allowing him the time he needed to complete his task.

Jackson replaced his boot but threw aside his ruined bracers. He flexed his muscles against the wraps, adjusting them to a bearable tightness. He made a mental note to ask Master for an antidote when returned.

Jackson looked to the ravine wall, determined a good spot, and easily scaled the jagged stone. He stood high above the crowd. "You will follow me to where you belong!"his voice boomed to the living puppets. They all turned their heads in unison then chattered their hinged jaws at him frantically.

Jackson wondered why they did that every time. It always gave him the creeps. Almost ounded like they were laughing at him...

Jackson jumped down to the canyon floor and walked through the masses until he pulled ahead of the pack. He pulled out the chains again and began shaking them as strode quickly in the direction of the red magic monster's maw gateway to HorrorLand.

The dolls were a bit uncoordinated at first and always lagged behind on their first march, which suited Jackson just fine. They always found their way eventually. As he increased his distance from them, Jack's attention was caught by the sight of a little green tail sticking out from behind a large rock.

_Oh no, please no...he wished he hadn't seen that._

He watched it as he got closer hoping it would stay still and lifeless, sparing him from having to do something awful.

It twitched and curled up.

_No! Why didn't it just stay still!?_

Jackson closed his eyes and suddenly felt very sick. Now he _had_ to check. Jack strode over and heard rustling and movement behind the stones. Around the corner he found the little horrors. They looked like the equivalent of a three year old and a six year old human children, but were green with tails, fangs, tiny horns, and big, frightened purple eyes. The oldest had a mess of dark purple hair pulled back in a pink little bow and smaller had a blue baseball cap on that look two sizes too big on him. They scurried further back in the short crevice to a larger horror at the end. She wore a long light purple dress and a thick dark green shall. The little horrors clamored to her and hugged onto her desperately, whimpering.

She didn't comfort them. She didn't do anything.

"M-m-mommy!"the littlest one sobbed,pulling her skirt in his small clawed hands as Jackson closed in on them.

The girl began to cry loudly,looking from him to her dead mother. She curled her little tail around herself then covered her face and cowered against her mother as well.

Jackson stared down at them morbidly.

He had tried to save the little ones before, but his master had taken them from the prison cell where he had been keeping them safe. He sent the living puppets to hunt them through HorrorLand like a demented game of cat and mouse while he was away one day. When he returned his Master gave him a choice; either he could kill all the small horrors that he had collected that day right then or he could have them join the game still in progress in the park.

They didn't stand a chance either way. If they were going to die...he could at least do it quickly.

There were seven that day. But none of them were so young as the little boy clinging to his unresponsive mother.

Even if he pretended he hadn't seen them, they would still die of exposure out here with no one to take care of them. Jackson reluctantly drew a silver edged dagger from the scabbard at his hip. It was a mercy killing. He kept telling himself that.

The two little ones screamed and wailed to their dead mother for protection she could no longer provide. Tears rolled down Jack's steely expression as he tried to deafen himself to their cries and looked for the best spot on the smallest to insert the dagger to snuff out it's short life quickest.

Then the mother squirmed. Jack held his breath as she seemed to wiggle beneath her shall. There was a high pitched wail and Jackson's stomach bottomed out.

The infant horror screeched and reached up from it's fabric pouch at her chest and pulled at it's mother's long, dark purple hair with it's pudgy tiny hand.

Jackson's mouth hung open in horrified shock. "Oh god...no."he breathed as he began to shake.

_He couldn't do this, could he? It was a baby. Why did it have to be a baby!?_

Jackson shut his eyes and clenched his jaw tightly, choking back panicked sobs and bile at the back of his throat.

_It would be quick. If he could do it quick..._

He took another step forward until he was looming over the tiny horror. It tossed and turned, writhing and screaming for comfort that would never come. He knew where the heart was on the poor creature. He could stab it there, but even then there was no instant death. There was still time for pain and fear to be the last thing they ever felt.

He knew this from experience. From the seven before. He never did figure out a best way to usher them into the afterlife. Only seven different horrible ends to lives too short lived. All he could say was that none of them suffered for more than a minute, but that was till beyond unacceptable.

"I can make it quick. If you'll hold still...it will hurt less."he told them softly, hoping they could be diplomatic.

"NO!"the little girl screamed against her mother. She began saying it over and over again like a mantra.

"I don't want to do this. Don't you understand that you'll die out here anyway?"he asked the hysterical children, feeling close to the same way.

"M-m-m-mommy! Mommy!"the smaller one began to wail in the same fashion as his sister. Then the baby cried all the louder and thrashed all the more.

He had only made it worse! He should have killed them straight away, before they had a chance to get into this state of panic. "I am sorry. I am t-truly s-sorry.."Jackson stammered, lifted his dagger, and decided it would be less painful to kill the girl first. Suddenly, the baby struggled free of it's pouch and fell from it's mother's chest.

Time seemed to hold still for moment.

The dagger fell and stuck in the rocky ground as Jack caught the tiny child in his battered hands. His knees dug into the pebbled black stones at the ground and his cloak fluttered from the speed of his movement.

It still astounded him how big he was as an adult. The baby was so small, it couldn't be more than a month or so old. He could almost cradle it's whole body with just his hands. It gurgled and reached out both it's little arms straight up at him, as babies that small often do when startled. His true instincts took over and he carefully supported it in the crook of his arm. His chest piece was hard and cold, but his arms were warm from battle and blood. It seemed to calm the baby. He gently cupped his hand to the the baby's side, warming it with his palm. Jackson could hold the entirety of the babe's arm with one hand. It grasped his thumb and pulled it toward it's mouth. "No...that's no good to eat."he said forgetting everything for a second. He sighed a shuddering breath and brushed his thumb across it's soft cheek.

The moment was bittersweet.

"What do you have there, Jackie-boy?"a dark playful voice asked behind him.

Jackson's face pulled taunt with pure terror for a few seconds. He bit the side of his tongue, making it crunch, as he willed himself calmer before facing his master. "Master."He greeted Mr. Wood and turned around, kneeling.

A tall vampire living puppet stared down at him with alarming red eyes from the opening of the crack in the chasm wall. All the other new dolls were collected behind him,all staring at him as well with empty,soulless eyes. "Those are children aren't they?"he asked gleefully.

"N-no!" Jackson said loudly and flared out his cloak trying to hide the little ones behind him. "They're nothing! Please, leave them to me to deal with!"

The doll crossed it's arms and lolled it's head back,"But you're taking so long.."he groaned. "You've just been coddling them when you should be killing them!"

"I..."Jackson cradled the babe in his arms protectively."...Master...please.."

The living puppet grunted loudly in frustration then snapped it's fingers. "Kill the children."he commanded the mob behind him. The dolls clamored through the opening and around their master eagerly.

"WAIT!"Jackson screamed as they closed in. He shielded the baby in his arms then looked back quickly at the other two children. They were still buried at their mother's sides in fear. He turned back around and his heart stopped for a beat. Red eyes filled his view as his master, remotely possessing one of the living puppets, crouched before him.

"If you refuse me, you break our contract and Rachel will lose that annoying protection you've bought her."He hissed smoothly. "I can promise you, Jack, I will waste no time taking your little sister to my bed to ravish her impossibly tight little cunt."he taunted him with a sickening, deep laugh.

Jackson seethed and shook. He glared into those red eyes with unadulterated hate and disgust. He hated him. He hated him so much he could taste it. But what could he do? How could he choose? Tears streamed down his face and he dropped his head in defeat and shame. "PLEASE! HAVE MERCY!"he cried as he heard the dolls beside him tearing the little horrors from their mother's corpse.

"Oh Jackson! Haven't we been together long enough for you to know me at all!?"he laughed.

Jackson lifted his head once more to his master. "PLEASE!MASTER!DON'T!"he screamed desperately, powerless to stop him.

He covered his mouth and arched it's brows at him, then bust out laughing. "Oh boy, Jack! You should see the look on your face! It's priceless!" He guffawed and howled with laughter as the children screamed.

Jackson's jaw hung open truly dumbfounded at the depth of wickedness housed in his master. His eyes widened and he paled as the sound of screaming was replaced by the sounds of choking, then cracking. All was quiet for a long second before Jack heard two soft thuds on the ground behind him.

His Master then roared in hysterics, clutching his side's laughing.

"Off with their heads! AH HA HA!"he bellowed. Between the look on Jackson's face and the way his slaves had chosen to twist the children's heads off, he couldn't have been more amused. He nearly choked a few times before he calmed down enough to speak again. "Oh..oh man I needed that,"he wiped away tears that only existed wherever his actual body was. He applauded the puppets,"Good job guys. Go take five!"he told them and they ambled back into the group outside the opening. He hummed happily as they left, then focused his attention on Jackson again. "Don't think I've forgotten about that thing in your arms."

Jackson stared forward in shock. He wept silently on his knees as the baby fussed in his arms.

"I left that one for you to kill."he said glancing down at the baby. "Kill it, Jackson." His red eyes flickered back up to his,"That's an order."

"_I'll trade._"Jackson whispered.

"What?"his master asked in monotone.

Jackson blinked slowly,"A year of my life... a year of my life for a year of this one's."

He looked at him unbelieving,"For that _thing_?"

"Yes."

"No."

Jack closed his eyes and clenched his jaw at the rejection. "A month."

His red eyes widened. "What?"

Jackson opened his eyes and made his master an offer he couldn't refuse. "A year for a month."

He crouched in front of him in stunned silence, then a crooked smile crept across his face,"Well, well, well...how could I turn that down?" He stood and dusted himself off,"If you had said something sooner I would have spared the other two as well..."he lied just to give his slave something to languish over.

"Do we have a deal?"he asked his master, hoping he wouldn't be fickle.

"Of course."He purred. "But when the month is up, I still expect you to do the deed."

"Yes, Master."Jackson whispered sadly, clutching the tiny child to him.

"We will commence the ritual when I return. Finish your job, then go back to The Stagger Inn."he commanded, then the living puppet's eyes returned to their blank state.

Jackson slowly stood to his feet once his master left. He walked in wobbly strides out of the crevice, intent on never looking back.

* * *

Kris ghosted through the dark halls, her white skirt trailing behind her. Her bare feet made no noise as she haunted the Stagger Inn in the absence of Mr. Wood.

It was getting close to dawn and there had been no sign of Wood or Wally. Wood left the morning before and hadn't returned yet, nor did he show signs of returning anytime soon. It was odd, he had never left her alone this long before. She had been ordered around so much that she forgot she could even do things on her own. She didn't know what to do with herself for the first twelve hours. Hunger was what implored her to leave their room. She had been shocked to find the door was unlocked when she finally mustered up the courage to try to open it.

Searching the hotel proved timid work. Lonely as well. There had been Rachel there, but Kris avoided the repugnant brat like the plague. She tried to leave the Stagger Inn a few times in different places only to receive a terrible shock at each attempt. All the same, she enjoyed having the freedom to explore her larger cage.

Kris's heart had dropped when she heard the doors open in the lobby a few minutes ago, but thankfully it had only been Jackson. Kris glared at him from the shadows. While she could recognize a fellow prisoner when she saw one, she couldn't get past the things she knew he had done.  
Something seemed queer about his arrival tonight, so she decided to shadow him through the vacant hotel. He had visited the kitchens first, then came back up the long staircase with a jug of milk and a burlap sack in one hand.

That was definitely odd.

She quietly stalked Mr. Wood's glorified errand boy back to his quarters where she peered in through the open door. His room was large, but nowhere near the size of the room she stayed in with Wood. It was more like a very basic studio apartment. Kris guess it was probably a room for people on a budget when this was still a hotel.  
She watched him go over to his kitchenette and set the milk on the counter and place the sack in the sink. He trudged to the back of the room where his bed lay under a large single pane window that illuminated the bed, and the rest of the room, with moon light from outside.  
She had noticed something else odd, he had only been using his left hand. Jackson unfasten his hooded cloak and let it drop to the floor in a weighted fall at the foot of the bed.  
Kris grimaced. He was covered in injuries again.  
In the shadow, a satisfied smile slowly crept into the corners of her mouth. Those injuries were a good thing. It had meant the monsters were fighting back...that somebody was fighting back.  
She had seen enough and was about to leave when a strange noise caught her undivided attention. Kris covered her mouth to stifle a gasp. She stared in shock as Jackson lay a baby horror in the middle of his bed.  
_Had he been cradling it in his arm the whole time?_  
He tenderly petted it's cheek then pulled his comforter up from the foot of his bed and covered the baby. He sighed and took his pillows from below the head board and positioned them on either side of the little one. She watched intently as he paused a moment, just hovering over the baby. After a few moments Jackson slowly rose from the bed and headed to the bathroom, picking up his cloak on the way.

When Kris heard the shower running she took the chance to sneak in and get a better look. Kris came to the bedside and peered into the pseudo nest he had made.  
It _was_ a little baby horror.  
It was so little and a lighter shade of green than the adults. Kris crawled onto the bed on her hands and knees to get a closer look. It had little nubs where horns would eventually grow, a lack of eyebrows, and a feathery down of purple hair on it's head. Kris crinkled her nose and frowned at the thought of how he could have came to have the infant. She looked closer and saw tiny tremors from the baby shivering. Her face softened into one of concern and compassion. Kris had babysat babies before,thanks to Lindy. Lindy would take the jobs, but in the end had absolutely no maternal instincts whatsoever and Kris would have to take over. Babies were fragile and should never get so cold as to shiver like that. The blankets were not enough to warm an already cold body. When she pulled the blanket down, she found the babe was only in a cloth diaper and socks.

Seemed Jackson had no parenting instincts either.

Kris quickly and carefully scooped up the tiny horror in her warm arms. She sat on her knees and pulled it close to her body. The poor creature was so cold she worried that it might have gotten frostbite or could have hypothermia. The baby wasn't all that responsive other than quiet simpers and discontent sighs.  
She pushed aside all her reservations. She took the child off the bed and flipped on a random light switch. A floor lamp illuminated near the bed.

Kris gasped loudly as she looked at the baby in appalled horror. The baby was smeared with blood! Red and green!  
Without a second thought Kris turned on her heel and rushed into Jackson's bathroom. She turned on his sink, but after a second look she could see it would be inadequate to bathe the child in. She shut off the tap, looked at the shower, and decided.

Jackson nearly jumped out of his skin when she opened the glass shower door. After the initial shock he just stood there like a deer in headlights before she pushed him out of the way. Careful not to spatter the child with too hot of a spray at first, she reached around and turned the water temperature down before laying the baby upright on her chest and stepping under the warm water. The babe cried loudly at first from the sudden change in temperature and Kris soothed it and rubbed it's skin as the water warmed and rinsed it's tiny body. After a few minutes the babe calmed and acted more alert. Kris sighed in relief.

She had almost forgotten about Jackson until his battered arms encircled her. It scared her, since she didn't know how he'd respond now that the shock had worn off.

Jackson began to remove the baby's socks and diaper that had swollen with liquid.

She felt her heartbeat slow down, then helped in the process by handling the baby and watched as he tossed the items to the corner of the shower. Jackson's arm reached to her left and retrieved a bar of soap. Her eyes widened in surprise when she felt a gentle firm touch at her belly, giving her a cue to step back from under the shower just a little. Kris stepped back further than he meant her to, because she bumped into his chest and she staggered for a misstep. He deftly caught her against his battle hardened body, steadying her once again. With only her soaked nightdress on Kris felt every detail of his chest down to his thighs against her back and backside.

_He would kill him._

Wood would murder him and probably her too if he saw them like this or if he ever found out about it.

The last thing she wanted was another man pressing his unmentionables anywhere near her, but she couldn't help but revel in how different his body felt. Wood was positively pillow-like compared to Jackson's hard body.

She wondered if this was what real men felt like. Something good and strong. Good and strong enough to choke Mr. Wood's eyeballs out.

They stood there pressed against one another, waiting for the other to move away first. After a few awkward seconds it became clear that neither of them wanted to.

His firm hand at her waist released her. His arms bowed around her and she looked on as he lathered up the soap in his hands inches from the shower stream.

Her attention diverted when the baby lifted it's head unsteadily and it readjusted itself in her arms. Kris immediately obliged it and accommodated to the little one's comfort. Her hand guided and supported the babe while her other hand cupped it's little bottom.

Jackson's soapy hand hovered just over hers cautiously.

The infant finally settled against her breast again then wrapped it's short tail halfway around her wrist. She felt the rockiness in Jackson's muscles relax a fraction when the baby was situated and wasn't in danger of wriggling out of her arms. Not that that would happen. She'd never dropped a baby and never intended to.

Rugged hands eclipsed her own as he delicately washed the baby clean. On her skin his hands felt rough and calloused from his daily labors, but his touch...it was tender and careful. She hadn't really expected that.

Like this, he was so contradictory to who he was when serving Mr. Wood. He was always cold, stern, and sever in his demeanor. He never contradicted or made any objections to Wood, and obeyed him unconditionally. The only time she had seen his frozen exterior crack was on the night of Mr. Wood's game of hide-and-seek in HorrorLand.

She asked to leave after the game began. There was nothing she could do for the child horrors, since there was no point in trying to appeal to his non-existent mercy. Wood gladly sent her off calling her a 'debbie downer' and appointed a living puppet to escort her back to their room. After a few hours she returned to him only to walk in on the most awful sight she had ever witnessed.  
The wide balcony over looking the park was covered in seven little green corpses. She had screamed and covered her eyes, but the image had already been burned into her mind. Mr. Wood, probably giddy from hearing her scream for the first time in weeks, forced her to look again.  
Jackson was standing over them with a blood tainted dagger in hand. Wood was making his usual disgusting jokes and taunts but she barely heard them. Her focus was on the dark cloaked figure staring down at the children. The dagger fell from his hand and clattered to the stone floor. He seemed to sway on his feet before falling to his knees into the still creeping pools of blood. He never made a sound and she never saw his face, but hours later she peeked out the penthouse window to see him still there.

Jackson set the soap aside and cupped his hands under the spray, collecting and pouring warm water over the little one until it was rinsed clean.

Kris carefully moved the baby to lay it down in the cradle of her arms. They rinsed it's tummy last, surprised to see it's gender as female.

"It's a girl."he said, echoing her thoughts.

"She's kind of cute."Kris said as she steadied the babe in her arm, then reached down and drew up the hem of her night dress.

Jackson quickly wrapped his arm around hers that held the baby,"Careful."

"I know how to hold a baby."she chided him as she wiped her tiny green face, using her dress as a wash cloth.

He lowered his arm and took a step back, removing his presence from her back. "I've only ever babysat my sister. All else I know about babies is from when I helped my mother take care of my baby cousin for a weekend last year."

Kris wiped at the little spot between the little ones eyes. It was a little funny how Jackson was so soft spoken, considering that he was capable of knocking out a werewolf with a single well placed blow. She'd seen it with her own eyes. It was a fairly impressive sight, she had to admit.

Kris finally looked over her shoulder, then turned around to face him up close for the second time since she had met him. Warm water spilled over her lower back as she gazed at him. She wondered if maybe she was near sighted, since what she saw was a little disturbing.

Back then, he had a boyish look to him and smooth clear skin, but now his face was covered in scars and abrasions. His chiseled jaw wore a long five o'clock shadow or the beginnings of a beard, she couldn't decide. Long, straight ashen brown hair lay wet and flat over his shoulders and most likely down his back as well. Kris stopped her visual assessment at the short fine hair that covered his chest then tapered and trailed further down below his belly button where it began to thicken.  
His entire body was a tapestry of bruises, cuts, and scars pulled taunt over a canvas of full, lean adonic muscle. When she raised her eyes back up to his face, she saw that while she had been evaluating him he had done the same to her...and hadn't quite finished yet. Kris blushed deeply at the sudden realization that, when wet, her white night dress offered her no modesty. Anywhere the dress clung it became almost translucent. She looked away bashfully, focusing on the creature in her arms instead. "Don't stare.." she whispered.

"I-"he started to say sounding embarrassed, then sighed. "I'm sorry. I've never seen a naked woman before."he admitted.

She found that hard to believe and he must have sensed her skepticism.

"I'm not what I seem..I'm..actually much younger that what I appear to be." he said shyly as he reached behind her and turned off the water.

"How old are you then? Seventeen?"she asked him without looking at him.

He ran his hands through his long hair and wrung out the remaining excess of water before exiting the shower.

"No. Technically, I'm twenty now."he corrected himself. "I traded eight years of my life to Master Wood for Rachel's safety."he said seriously.

Kris did the math in her head and her eyes went wide. "You're only twelve?"she gawked as she looked up through the doorway of the shower.

Jackson was just outside it drying his hair with a towel. She could see everything she had abstained from glimpsing before. Kris hadn't thought she'd like body hair on a man, but what she saw she had to confess appealed to her. Perhaps it was because Wood had so little that she had suddenly found a preference to the opposite.

He finished and caught her staring when he lowered the towel from his head. He stared at her with the same stunned expression as when she first joined him in the shower and quickly covered himself.

"S-sorry."she said looking away. How confusing it must be for him to suddenly be in that body.

"It's...o-okay..only fair.."He wrapped the towel around his waist and tucked it so it'd stay, then took another smaller towel from a short white stand. "I'll take the baby while you dry off."he said walking back to her, but avoiding her gaze.

She carefully traded the baby into Jackson's waiting arms. He wrapped her up and exited the bathroom.

Kris stood alone then looked down at her soaked dress. It had to come off. She undid the ribbon on the front and it fell to the shower floor with a wet plop. Truly naked now, she hurried over and retrieved a towel from the stand. She dried off her long blonde hair first. Kris paused. She could see her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Out of morbid curiosity she turned to the side and looked over her shoulder. Many thin pink scars were thatched up and down her back. She got them on her first week under Mr. Wood.

The memory of being chained to their bed as he whipped her with a thin lashing rod for the first three days made her stomach turn. The only relief she received at that time were when he'd get sporadic migraines.

She didn't want to think about this now.

Kris wrapped the towel around herself tightly and pushed the memory to the back of her mind. She remembered why she avoided mirrors now. She couldn't stand the sight of herself anymore...whipping hadn't been the only way he'd broken her.

She hurried out of the bathroom in time to see Jackson sitting on his bed, shaking a baby bottle with what looked like pink colored milk in it. He was cradling the baby in the crook of his other arm. Kris approached him,"Did you check the temperature?"

He nodded then began to try to get the baby to latch onto the bottle. "I followed the directions on the canister."

Kris looked to the kitchenette where the contents of the bag he had brought in were spread out on the counter. It looked like he had raided one of the abandoned horror convenience stores hidden in the park. A big tub of baby formula sat on the counter along with a pack of diapers, and a set of bottles. "You'll need more than that to take care of her."she told him.

Jackson made a noise of acknowledgement as he intently focused on getting the baby to eat. He tried to part it's little lips and get the nipple past with no luck. The baby just squirmed and turned it's head away. "Please eat.."Jackson begged her. Jackson eyebrows were knitted in worry and looked almost to the point of tears.

"Give her to me."Kris demanded. "Babies are empathetic and can tell if you're upset. She'll never drink if you keep trying like that." She settled in beside him on the bed.

He gratefully handed the baby over to Kris.

Kris took one of the pillows and tucked it under the arm supporting the baby. They settled in then she took the bottle from Jackson.  
"It's time to eat sweetie. I know it isn't mommy's milk, but it'll get your hungry tummy full.."she cooed to her as she gently brushed the nipple along the babies upper lip. After a few tries and verbal coaxing, the baby latched on and immediately started gulping it down hungrily. Kris smiled a true smile for the first time in a long time. "There we go. That's a good girl."

Jackson sighed a deep sigh of relief. He slumped forward onto his knees and held his head his hands.

"What happened tonight? Where did she come from?"Kris asked with concern as she coddled the baby.

He was quiet for a long time. "I don't want to think about it.."he said finally.

It must have been bad. There were still blue bandages wrapped around his arms and his calf. She knew they were enchanted and were only meant to be used in emergencies.

"Are you okay? Do you need the doctor?"she asked him awkwardly. It felt out of place being so friendly with him. After all, she still held a resentment for him because he had been the one who kidnapped her to begin with. She also hated how that even with all his strength he still obeyed Wood and did even the most despicable things he asked of him.

"No. I'll tend to these now...if you don't mind sitting with her until I get back?"he asked looking at his wounds.

Kris looked at the dozing infant in her arms. "Yes, but...I like her, Jackson. But I'm reluctant to grow too attached. Once he finds her he'll...", Kris couldn't finish her thought. It was too awful.

"Don't worry. He already knows about her."Jackson said solemnly.

Kris looked up at him hopefully, but wasn't all that comforted by his expression.

He lifted his head from his hands, looking only at the baby. He smiled sadly as he petted her soft tufts of hair, making her sigh and close her eyes. "I traded for her like I did my sister."

She felt both relieved and dismayed at the same time. "How much did you trade?"

"A year."he said evenly.

Kris looked down,"That..isn't so bad."

Jackson sighed,"A year for a month."

Kris looked at him in horror,"Jackson..why?"

"I had to do it."he said sadly. "It had to be an offer he couldn't refuse."

Kris didn't know what to say and sat speechless, then finally spoke up. "It's not that I'm not happy you save her...it's just..not fair." Kris looked down sadly at the poor child in her arms who had no idea her short days were numbered. "What happens at the end of the month?"

"He wants me to kill her."he said without batting an eye. He followed up that quickly with,"But that won't happen. I'll make him another offer before then."

Kris gawked at him,"You know how he is. You can't try to predict how he'll respond, Jackson."

"There's a lot of magic that can be woven with a year of life. So much can happen in a year, that's why it's such a powerful thing. The possibilities are like fuel. When you give it up, you've given up all the people you could have met, the things that should have happened at the right time, and all the other life experiences you could have had and give them to someone else use as they please." Jackson said in his stoic soft voice. "He'll take it. He has to..."

Kris glared straight ahead intensely as she set the bottle aside and placed the baby on her chest to burp her. "But what if it's only a week next time? Then a few days? Then hours? What will you do? Just keep whittling away at your life until there's nothing left?"she asked him angrily.

"I..don't..."Jackson balled up his fists. "I'll think of something. I will protect her." He sounded as if he were trying to convince himself as much as her.

"The same way you protect your sister?"she asked venomously.

"Yes."He responded with the same edge.

Kris looked him in the eye with a fire she didn't know she still had in her. "You'd kill other children for her?"

He stared back at her stunned for a long span. He only broke their eye contact when his eyes began tearing up."What else am I supposed to do,Kris? Can you tell me? Because I really don't know."

Kris spoke before thinking,"Why don't you just not do it? Any of it."

Jackson cringed at her words."You think I don't want to? You and I know what happens when someone tells him 'no', Kris." He watched the baby start to doze off. "I can't refuse him or it breaks our contract. He's already told me he'll go after Rachel."

The mention of Rachel's name heated the fire in her she didn't know burned so hot either. "Is she more important than the innocent baby in my arms..?" Kris asked him fiercely as she cuddled her close against her chest. "Rachel doesn't even appreciate you. She's an awful girl, Jackson, and you know it." Kris gently bounded on the bed to help the baby burp. "She wants to be with him. You should just let her."

"I can't let him do that. I know what he does to you."Jack stated grimly.

It was Kris's turn to cringe. She closed her eyes, shutting down the connection they had. "_That's sort of your fault, now isn't it?_"she said in just over a whisper."You're the one that brought me here after all. The one that _kidnapped_ me."

"I've done a lot of unimaginable things." Jackson gazed at the babe in Kris's arms. "I can't begin to make up for any of them and I don't expect forgiveness from anyone. That being said, I understand what I've done and I'm sorry for every last life I ruined."  
He reached behind Kris. His fingertips touched behind her left ear, then they trailed along her neckline as her collected her long hair and placed the river of it over her right shoulder. "You don't want spit up in your hair."he explained sounding quiet and distant.

Kris hated him...at least...she wanted to hate him. Getting to know him a little better tonight had made it much harder."Is that your way of apologizing?"

"No."he said then did something she didn't expect. Jackson slipped off the bed and knelt down in front of her, head bowed. "I'm sorry, Kris. I deserve nothing less than all your hate. It's my fault..all of it. I am sorry for all the pain I've caused you."

Kris stared down at him,"It isn't enough to only apologize."

"It's all I can do, Kris." Jackson said wearily.

He wouldn't get off so easily. Since he was so good at keeping his word..."If you really mean your apology then, at some point, I'll ask you to do one thing for me, Jackson. When I do,will you obey me unconditionally?"she asked him cryptically.

He hesitated with his answer. "Yes. I'll do anything you ask of me, Kris. Even if it's to kill myself."

Kris scoffed,"I think that would be more of a wish fulfillment on your part."

"You don't ever feel like dieing?"he asked.

"Every day."she answered without a second thought. "This place..him...it's all unbearable."she said with quiet conviction.

The baby suddenly burped loudly for such a tiny thing, surprising the both of them. Kris made a face when she felt a warm slow trickle creeping down her back. "I'm glad you moved my hair..."

Jackson didn't miss a beat. He rose to his feet and climbed onto the bed, behind her. She heard him take off his towel then felt the terry fabric rub against her skin. He wiped the spittle away. "What should we name her?"

A name? It seemed pointless now. Kris knew this was so fleeting. A month goes by quicker than one would think it can and there was little point to drag out the inevitable, but...all the same...a name did come to mind. "I like the name Medley."she stated as the baby quietly snored on her. It was too late. She already made space in her heart for the little orphan horror. "You need to find her some clothes. It gets cold in this drafty old place."

"Okay."he said gently.

"And a bassinet and more socks.."she added as she stood, clutching the baby with both arms. She turned around and he was on his knees on the bed tucking his towel edge back in around his waist. She smiled then carefully climbed up the bed to the little nest he had made for Medley before. She bent over and gently lay her back down. "And some toys, some soft blankets, burp cloths, baby wash, lotion..."she said listing off everything she could think of.

"Should I get a note pad?"he asked her as he pulled the blanket up to just below Medley's little chin.

Kris crawled off the bed and moved her hair off her shoulder. She watched Jackson kiss Medley's forehead before climbing off the bed himself, then stood at the edge admiring her. "Are you really only twelve?"she asked as she joined him at his side.

He inhaled deeply through his nose then exhaled slowly. "I'm not sure anymore. I guess it would be more accurate to say I should be twelve."

"I'm eighteen." she stated.

"You're very pretty."he stated out of nowhere.

She looked up at him. She could swear he was blushing. "Thank you."

"You should go back to your room before he comes back. He'll lose it if he finds us like this." Jackson said and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Alright."Kris agreed. She looked to the bathroom,"Get rid of my dress after it dries."she told him as the prospect of Wood finding it in Jackson's room would be very nasty. "It's too wet to take with me now."

He turned to her,"Thank you for everything tonight."

"I'll come back...to check up on Medley." She blushed.

It must be terrible for him being in that body, it was even confusing for her.

"Good night."she said before leaving his room. Kris knew having any kind of relationship with Jackson was terrible idea, but she had a nagging feeling it could also be her saving grace.


	35. Chapter 35

"Mmm, I love mint chocolate chip."Lizzy commented across the red laminate diner table, then took another sip of her green and black speckled milkshake.

Slappy discretely poured himself another shot of cognac in a tumbler of ice under the table. "Sorry you had to wait in the car."he said referring to twenty minutes before at the liquor store.

"Not a problem."she said looking out the large diner window as the sun touched the horizon.

Slappy replaced his brown paper bag back on the floor under the table, then reclined back on the cushioned booth."I would have lent you Amy's fake I.D. but you don't look alike, primarily that you lack her vacant expression."he said then sipped on his drink.

Lizzy quickly glanced to him and gave a reserved chuckle,"That's mean."

Slappy stretched his long legs under the table and propped heels up on either side of Lizzy. "You though it was funny. What does that say about you?"he asked her with a smirk.

"It's the way you said it."she said looking at his leather wing-tip oxfords poorly trapping her in place. "Gonna move those?"she asked, tapping the toe of his left shoe with her black lacquered finger nail.

Slappy just smiled then looked out the window at the sunset. "So I was thinking. You and I should work together from here out. I enjoyed the past twenty-four hours and I feel comfortable having you as my partner."

Lizzy's dark blue eyes widened and she fluttered her lashes in surprise."What about Amy and Ray?"

Slappy rolled his eyes then sighed with a sneer. "What about them? You saw what they're like. I have no doubt that if I had come to you first, I'd already be fully restored."

Lizzy blushed at his flattery. She took another sip of her drink then gave a chuckle. "How can you be so sure you wouldn't have just gone for another mixer with the school's wood chipper?"

Slappy downed most of his cup at the memory. "It wasn't so bad. Try being burned to death sometime."he said with a sharp wry smile.

Lizzy scrunched up her nose and cringed. "I'll take your word for it.."

"So what do you say, Lizzy?"

"Umm..."Lizzy scratched the back of her neck. It kinda felt wrong, but at the same time it did make sense. After seeing his current companions it was obvious that it would take a miracle to get anywhere with them. Then there was Ned. She didn't have time to wait for miracle and neither did he. Lizzy's expression became stern and all business. She looked Slappy in the eye and smirked,"Sure. I suppose that would make sense. You are my most promising chance to save Ned, after all." She extended her hand across the table to him.

Slappy took the last sip of his liquor to hide his frown. The mention of another male annoyed him. "Alright then..."he said behind the cup then set it down and drew his legs back, sitting up straight. He took her hand and griped it across the table,"It's a deal."

"Well, ittin' that sweet?"the waiter said as he walked up the aisle behind Slappy. "You's like peas and carruts'!"he said in a exaggerated southern accent.

Lizzy frowned then let go of Slappy's hand quickly, blushing all the way to her ears. "It's not like that!"she blurted out.

The waiter tittered then suddenly pranced over to Lizzy's bench then scooted the shocked girl over to sit down beside her. "You are just too precious!"he crooned.

Slappy couldn't see straight for a few long seconds as the auburn haired waiter took on over Lizzy, fiddling with her hair and chatting with her. The waiter's eyes danced with acrid green glee as he fawned over the obviously uncomfortable girl. Slappy's eyes narrow and thin lips pull back into a snarled, venomous glower. His voice was low and the sound of it reverberated through the diner like an aftershock. "GET AWAY FROM HER."

Lizzy had to do a double take at Slappy. His eyes had gone from captivating, unnatural blue to searing florescent green, the light of which seemed to drip at the edges. She looked back at the waiter to be greeted by blood red eyes clear as garnets.

Wood could see decadent fear in the girl's eyes and he smiled in glee accordingly. "She is a peach! Slappy, you always have had good taste in women."he said as he tickled the venerable curve of her throat with his elongated fingernails. "I could just gobble this one up."

Lizzy jerked away and scrambled back on the bench until her back hit the wall. She wanted to look away, but she couldn't stop looking at his scarlet eyes. There was something wild and predatory in them that left her paralyzed in terror, like a little rabbit cornered by a hungry fox. Her blood chilled her as his hand reached for her again and she crammed herself harder into the wall.

There was a red blur as Slappy threw the table that separated him from Lizzy in a violent explosion of strength and fury. In a burst of speed, Slappy seized his brother by the wrist and slung him to the neighboring wall as the table obliterated the fiberboard ceiling tiles above them. Slappy snatched up Lizzy in a sloppy bridal style and jumped the booth behind them, racing out of the diner with her in his arms. He bolted straight to Action Bastard but halfway there a shock wave from within the diner blew out all the widows and him off his feet. Lizzy cried out and he immediately curled his larger form around hers as they fell. He hit the ground hard, rolled once then skidded on his back a short way before coming to a stop. His back stung from the road rash, but he quickly turned his attention to the girl in his arms,"Lizzy! Are you okay!?"

Glass rained from the sky as she looked in a daze at Slappy. "Wh-what..?" Everything had happened so quickly, she hadn't even noticed that they were outside. The world spun again as she suddenly found herself on her back underneath him as an earth shattering explosion rocked from within the diner. This time she felt the heat of flames raging behind the immense second pressure wave at ground zero.

Slappy closed himself closer around her like a shell as flaming debris came clattering down from the sky.

"Is that him!? Is that guy your brother!?"Lizzy yelled.

Slappy cringed as each sharp hot bit of what was once the diner struck him. As soon as it let up he would have to snatch up Lizzy again and-

There was another loud cracking noise and Lizzy stared wide eyed up at the red-headed terror standing at her feet. Slappy was gone and Wally stood holding a singed diner table in his hands by it's end. He shook the table and giggled, looking incredibly pleased with himself. "He he he! That was more fun than I thought it'd be! I think that was a home run!"Wood said as he flung the table behind him.

Lizzy sat up and looked for Slappy frantically,"Slappy!?" Lizzy gasped and covered her mouth. Slappy was struggling to free himself from the crushed in side of a car to her right. His teeth were bared and his glass eyes gleamed with their unnatural light. He had lost his human illusion and looked furious.

"FUCK OFF, WALLY! YOU LOUSY LITTLE PRICK!"he screamed as he bent away the mangle around him.

Lizzy jumped to her feet and ran to him. "Hold on! I'll help you!"

"Now hold up little lady!"Wood said as he soared after her, inches off the ground. The girl looked over her shoulder just in time for him to see the look in her eyes before he backhanded her. Wood could barely hold back his mirth as she fell to the ground. She even made a cute little noise when she hit the pavement. "Oh, Slappy...how cute..how cute." Wood stood over her body and reached down, grabbing a fist full of her short inky black hair. Her desperate cry sent shivers through him, building a familiar ache at his core, straight to where it hurt the best. "What a seductive cry you have little girl..."He purred as he lifted her to his shoulder.

"WALLY!"Slappy roared in a fury as he tore away the roof of the car.

"S-stop it! That hurts, you cree-AAAHHH!"she wailed as his fist twisted her short strands punishingly tight. She scratched at his hand and struggled, but it only made the pain worse.

Wood pressed his nose into the soft angel hair at the crook of her neck and breathed her in,"The smell of your fear and disdain is a powerful aphrodisiac..." he moaned then licked the curve of her ear and gripped her inner thigh,"...hate me more.."

Lizzy paled and her expression turned to grisly terror. He wasn't joking around, she could feel him pressing it against her backside "SLAPPY!"she shrieked.

"SHE'S MINE!"Slappy roared as he burst free of the wreckage and charged at his brother. Wally moved his offending hand from her lower half as Slappy threw a hard jab at his smug twisted face. He caught his punch and stumbled back a half step, causing him to shake Lizzy in the air by her hair.

"It's seems as though you really care for your proxy, Slappy. Maybe I shouldn't kill her right away." Wally pushed back hard on Slappy's captured fist, sending him skidding back on his feet three car lengths away. "Maybe I'll play with her first!" He laughed then threw Lizzy to his left where she hit the ground like a rag doll.

"GODDAMN YOU, WALLY!"Slappy ran to Lizzy and skid on his knees to a stop when he reached her,"Lizzy!? Can you get up?"he asked her in a panic.

She groaned as she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees. She gasped sharply and clutched her right shoulder. The fall had nearly dislocated it, but she pushed the pain out of her mind. "Yes! I'm fine! We have to get-" Lizzy stopped mid sentence. An icy breeze and sudden temperature drop surrounded her. She lifted her head and let out a high cry. Icicles had erupted from the ground like a cage around her and had impaled Slappy throughout the chest, throat, and arms. He made gagging noises and he wore a look of shock as he seemed to struggle against the icy harpoons invading his body. "Oh my god!"she screamed as she tried to free him.

"Ha ha ha! You look like a porcupine!"Wood laughed a few feet away as he shook the frost from his palm.

Slappy furrowed his brow angrily then violently arched his back, breaking the spires of ice and freeing himself from his prone position. He staggered quickly to his feet then turned to his brother and screamed in fury. The icicle through his throat shattered and when he clenched his fists the same happened to the ones through his arms. "A porcupine!? I'll turn you into road kill!"he hissed as he slowly pulled the three long icicles from his chest.

Lizzy shook freezing shards off of herself and watched Slappy pull the icicles from his body, leaving vacant ragged holes behind, then he threw them back at his brother like spears.

Wood swiped his arm quickly in front of him and the icicles turned to harmless snow that fluttered in the air. "Is that the best you've got, Slappy? I've got to say, I'm a bit disappointed."

"What is wrong with you, Wally!?"Slappy screamed at his brother. He stood outside of the exit he had made in Lizzy's cage of ice, blocking Wally's view of her. At the very least, as long as he held his attention, he couldn't cast anything on her. He glared hard into the blood red eyes staring back at him with such amusement. "I can understand you taking from me, because you've always been jealous, but why.." Slappy's fists unclenched and held them out palms up in a pleading gesture,"WHY are you killing all the horrors!? Why are you turning all of our monster kin into slaves!?"

"Have you really not figured it out yet...? Are you seriously telling me that you haven't become any wiser?" Wood glared at him through half lidded eyes and his upper lip curved in a sneer.

He didn't have the patience for guessing games! "Stop screwing around, Wally! Answer me!"Slappy yelled.

"I am not Wally you idiotic doll." Wood growled at him in disgust.

Slappy was losing all his patience with his little brother,"Then who the hell are you, huh!?"

"You really don't recognize me...?"he asked smoothly.

Apparently, he might_ have_ to play Wally's game. The little creep always bugged him relentlessly to play games with him, even though Wally would rarely win. "Stop fucking around. This is serious."he hissed through clenched teeth at him.

"I like your new form, Slappy. Aside from your obvious brain damage, it looks like a much better fit than this one."he said and scratched his nose. "I really hate red heads."

"My body would be the only thing you haven't taken away from me, but fat chance trying to get it, asshole."he spat at his brother. He motioned back to Lizzy,"Lizzy...get out of the ring of ice then climb on my back. We're leaving." He heard her scramble to her feet behind him then felt her hands on his shoulders. Slappy dipped down just enough for her to get on, but never broke eye contact with Wally.

"That isn't going to do you any good you know."he said dully.

"The police are going to be here soon. Unless you're faster than a bullet, then I suggest we both retreat for now." Slappy said as he side stepped the ice cage behind him and moved towards a modestly damaged Action Bastard.

Wood glanced at the out of place vehicle. He lifted his hand up, open palmed, then clenched it shut tightly. A huge ice spike erupted from the ground, impaling Action Bastard and lifting it off the ground.

Slappy quickly turned and looked in shock at the ruined car. He had liked that car and Amy loved it. He bitterly thought that at least if he didn't finish off his brother, now Amy would. He kinda wished she was there with him instead of Lizzy. Amy was meatier and could handle a beating.

"Oopsie daisy."he laughed. Wood produced a handful of glass orbs from nothing then threw them to ground. They rolled, splitting into five pairs surrounding Slappy and Lizzy.

Lizzy tightened her arms around Slappy's chest. As she stared at the enchanted orbs, she realized they weren't just that. "Slappy, those are eyes!"she rasped then hid her face in his shoulder. She couldn't take much more of this, it was all too much too sudden. Was this what it was going to be like all the time from now on?

The eyes stared as shadows formed beneath them. From the pitch rose blackened, gangly forms of living puppets. It took all of a thirty seconds for them to fully materialize around their eyes. Two werewolves, a vampire, a witch, and a Creep.

"Call them off,Wally!"Slappy demanded. While he was curious as to what sorts of abilities the dolls possessed, he knew he couldn't fight with Lizzy at risk. He felt a small twinge of hope at the sound of approaching sirens as the emergency crews were finally arriving at the scene would ward off his brother. Unfortunately, Slappy highly doubted anyone else in the diner made it out alive.

"Wally is in here you know...he's just barely hanging on."Wood said and tapped at his temple with his finger. "He was nothing like you.."Wood slowly sauntered closer to Slappy. "You were able to shut me out for quite some time. So stoic, sneaky, and stubborn..you were my perfect enemy and I had no idea. All that time and I didn't have a clue that you had developed a will of your own."

If Slappy had a heart it would have dropped to the pit of his stomach at that moment. Wally walked closer, and the closer he got, the more familiar those red eyes became. One thing that was clear to him now was that those eyes truly did not belong to his brother.

"I found out your little secret a little too late, didn't I? It cost me decades of being stuck at the back of your minds. I was forced to watch you two tool around doing whatever you wanted EXCEPT for the one thing I designed you to do! You were supposed to revive me you treacherous, slave!"he yelled at Slappy, red-faced and pointing an accusing finger.

Slappy's jaw hung agape. He was at a loss of words. He couldn't believe it.

"DO YOU REMEMBER ME NOW, SLAVE!? DO YOU REMEMBER YOUR MASTER!? YOUR CREATOR!? DO YOU, YOU LITTLE INGRATE!?"he roared and spat at him, coming in dangerously close.

Long repressed memories suddenly came rushing back to him like a tidal wave. They flooded his mind numbing him to the reality of the moment. On the inside, Slappy suddenly felt very small and new again. Scared. Confused. Helpless. The same feeling as at the beginning of it all, when he and Wally were born into the service of their master. He stared helplessly as his master, dressed in his brother's skin, raging at him, shouting, and hurling insults.

"Slappy..?"Lizzy hugged onto him tighter.

"Shut up, girl. As soon as I've gotten rid of you, Slappy will have nobody else to keep him immortal except for me."he snapped at her. "Won't it be nice Slappy? You by my side again? You were always my favorite...so I'll take your body and stick you in Wally's. He was never of much use anyway. I won't be sad when he's finally gone..."he said then chuckled.

"No." he said, the word trembling on his tongue.

"Oh, you obstinate fool..."he sighed and ran a hand through his red bangs.

"Give my brother back.."Slappy seethed.

"There's next to nothing left. It's a waste of effort."he said with an eye roll.

"Give him back!"Slappy roared.

"NO!"he yelled back, then thought for a second. A cruel smile crept across his face," Not unless you want to make a deal..."


	36. Chapter 36

"Fuck you and your underhanded deals!"Slappy roared in rage.

He trembled from the flood of raw emotions surging through him. "You.._I remember you_..."he whispered, hanging his head. "I remember everything now."Slappy cringed as a bolt of pain shot through his skull and shivered. "..you _sick motherfucker_!" His head felt like it was going to burst from all the years of memories his mind was straining to process and re-categorize all at once. His ex-master must have loosed something in his mind when he addressed him directly or maybe it was a natural reaction to their proximity.

Wood burst out laughing. "You've really gotten a mouth on you in the past few years!" He walked up behind the witch and wrapped his arms around her. The doll made no response. It only stared at Slappy and Lizzy with it's glassy purple eyes as Wood petted the curve of her hinged wooden chin. She was much like Slappy in his mannequin form. They all were. Accurate depictions of their previous forms, but unlike Slappy, they were devoid of life.  
"I'm not sure if I want to shut it or not...that mouth of yours." Wood ran his hands over his plaything's curves. "That's the trade off with having complete and utter control over something. It just isn't as much fun after a while..." Wood batted his hand at the witch's black hair, flinging it into her face. "It really gets boring."

"That won't be a problem with me."Slappy grumbled under his breath.

Wood's expression lit up and he crossed his arms and smiled. "Oh really? Have you decided to willingly come back to me?"

Slappy snorted and glared at him, his eyes narrowed to slits,"Not a chance in hell. That's why it won't be a problem, because I'm never going back with you, Francesco!"

Francesco's garnet eyes flared,"How dare you address me by name! I am your master you pathetic little shit!"

Slappy gripped the outsides of Lizzy's thighs, giving her more support, and lessening the strain that her clinging put on his neck and shoulders. His head felt like there were ice picks stabbing behind his eyes, but the pain was taking a backseat to his one firm desire to defy and finally set himself apart from his ex-master. Angrily, Slappy kicked hard at an accumulation of debris scattered at his feet to Francesco,"I am NOT your slave anymore!"he yelled.

Francesco's arm shot up, shielding his face from the twisted metal, shattered glass, and asphalt flying at him. Indignant rage boiled in his belly. "SLAPPY! DON'T FORCE ME TO KILL YOU!"  
Francesco dropped his arm and looked at his waiter's uniform for any damage then back to Slappy, only to find him gone. His red eyes went wide then he looked around quickly. He caught sight of him running down the road, narrowly avoiding an on coming firetruck.  
"GET HIM!" Francesco commanded his living puppets. His slaves jumped at his beckon and swiftly dashed in pursuit of the two. "That little bastard...he's going to regret that."he growled as he stalked in the direction the puppets had gone.

Police cars and ambulances arrived at the still blazing diner just before the firetruck. An officer came striding towards him,"Hey! Stop right there! Do you know what happened here!?"he asked him, holding out a hand to signal him to stop.

Francesco rolled his red eyes then flipped his wrist in the air. An ice spire shot from the ground,impaling the man five feet off of the ground. "Fuck off. I'm not in the mood."he said sourly and walked away as the still living man slowly slid further down the spike, widening his wound inch by inch.  
He couldn't help but smile a little at the expression on the man's face as he walked by. His mood elevated further by the sound of,who he had to assume was the officer's companion, screaming behind him.  
His jovial smile was interrupted as the sound of bullets being fired rang out. Francesco flinched and looked behind him. He was relived to find it was only the cop's partner trying to shoot the spire. He giggled as he sauntered away, watching only long enough to see a fireman running up with an axe.  
Sure, that would free the man, but that wound was fatal. "Idiots..."he said with an amused shake of his head.

* * *

"SLAPPY! They're catching up!"Lizzy screamed.

_What the hell was he doing?_

Slappy charged into the oncoming traffic on the highway. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. It wasn't a complete bust since one of the living puppets had managed to get hit by an eighteen wheeler, but he was beginning to regret his decision. Mostly, because Lizzy was one hell of a screamer.

"SHUT UP! I KNOW THEY'RE STILL AFTER US!"he yelled back at her as he jumped into the second lane, narrowly avoiding another minivan. He was he happy that Lizzy was skinny. If he was carrying Amy's ass they would be dead. But then again, Amy would have wanted to stay and fight.  
Especially after...  
Slappy groaned. He was not looking forward to explaining what had happened to Action Bastard to her.

"Shit."Slappy cursed as traffic began to slow. Their presence in the roadway had caused confusion and delay to the evening commuters. Slappy watched as his plan slowly came to a dead stop. Humans blared their horns and screamed vulgarities and insults at them as he deftly wove through the vehicles. Slappy glanced over his shoulder.

He only saw three of the living puppets in pursuit behind them. "Where's the witch..?"Slappy hissed. A sharp blow to the belly answered that question quickly.

Lizzy was thrown off of Slappy from the force of the halting jab. She landed on the asphalt in the road between two cars and was knocked out cold.

"_FUCK! THAT HURT_!"Slappy yelled, keeled over and holding his gut, at the witch. He spotted Lizzy on the road behind her. "Lizzy!"he cried out and stumbled toward the prone girl. The witch quickly intercepted him and kneed him in the face, knocking him to the ground.  
Slappy cupped a hand over his wooden nose, that now felt a little blunter, and writhed a moment on the ground. "FOR FUCK'S SAKE!"he shouted at himself. He glared up at the witch as she stared down at him. "She's kicking my ass!"he yelled in disbelief.  
The witch knelt over and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.  
Slappy's eyes widened in wonder as she lifted him off his feet with ease. He struggled to make her grip wavier,"Come on! Fight it! I know there has to be some fraction of you still left inside there!"he pleaded with her.

She stared back at him with empty purple eyes.

"Or not."he said dead pan. Then a thought occurred to him. He smirked at her,"Catch me if you can!" he said then snapped his fingers, transforming back into his small form, and fell to the ground. She stood still a moment only holding his black sweater. Slappy darted off into the cover of stuck traffic. Being small did have it's advantages.

The witch dropped the sweater and ran after him.

His plan was to lead the dolls away from Lizzy. Then he could give them the slip and retrieve her.

He had to get back to the Molloy's house and get those books!

Like an idiot, he had only been scanning through his options all night, but hadn't bothered to memorize any other than a few. A few that were completely useless to him right now. He darted a weaved between the cars in an unpredictable pattern then, when he was satisfied with his distance, he rolled under a car and listened as people suddenly screamed and stampeded past the car.

The dolls must have been attacking them too.

"Come on man! I didn't meant it!"a human cried out among the madness.

_Goddamn humans_.

Slappy sighed irritably as he deduced the situation. That idiot must have picked a fight with one of the puppets.

"Please! I really didn't meant it!"he blathered as he scuttled backwards on the road.

Slappy frowned hard at a horrible impulse made itself known. He was sure that moron deserved what was coming to him...why should he care what happened to the human?  
He had to wait here for his human. Wait until he could sneak back to save her.

"Daddy? What's happening? Why is the doggie so mad at you? Can we go home?"a little voice asked.

Slappy's eyes went wide at the sound of a little voice. "FUCK!" he yelled. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!?" he immediately scrambled out of his hiding spot and dashed in the direction of the voices.

Of all the shitty luck...

Slappy skidded on the asphalt when he reached them. The wolf was choking the life out of who he figured was a little girl's father. Slappy ripped a passenger's side mirror off the car to the left of him then threw it smack dead on the back of the wolf's head. "I'm right here shit for brains!"Slappy yelled at the werewolf. "Come get me!"

The werewolf dropped the man and stalked toward Slappy.

Slappy looked at the little girl,"Take your dad and get the hell out of here now, kid!"he yelled then ran in the opposite direction, drawing the wolf away from her.

Slappy sighed to himself as he ran. It worked, but now he had to come up with a new plan for Lizzy. Slappy suddenly stopped in his tracks.

"How very valiant of you, Slappy! I didn't know you had a soft spot for children.."Francesco said as he hovered fifteen feet above the ground ahead of Slappy. He held unconscious, limp Lizzy in the crook of his arm, at his hip. Her body was turned face-up and arms hung out at her sides. "Well, I have a disposition toward them as well, but mine is a bit different from yours..."he mused as he slowly descended,"..and I prefer them a little older than that little girl. Ten to twelve is the perfect age, really. I suppose that preference was the only influence I could impose upon you while I was trapped in your mind."he groaned miserably but smiled again quickly. "I guess young things are my number one guilty pleasure..."he purred then licked his lips. He ran his finger down Lizzy's chest and her blouse buttons popped off on contact with his index finger. "Even some that are a little long-in-the-tooth like this one can still be fun." He landed softly on the yellowish grass earth dividing the highways.

"GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OF HER!"Slappy yelled as he charged straight at his ex-master. He got close before the werewolf pounced on him, hard. It drove Slappy's small wooden face into the dirt as it pinned him down. "GRAAAHHH!"Slappy screamed in rage as he watched Francesco open Lizzy's shirt and pop the joining clasp at the front of her tan bra. "Lizzy!"he cried and struggled against his captor.  
Panicking would do him no good.  
He collected himself enough to focus and switch back to his mannequin form. With his longer limbs he managed more leverage to buck the wolf off his back. Once free he rolled to his feet and turned to punch the werewolf in it's snout. "BAD DOG!"he yelled as the wolf's head spun around. Slappy turned back to Francesco. "Stop what you're doing right now or I'll make you pay dearly..."he hissed.

Francesco scoffed,"Please, spare me your empty threats, slave. It bores me." He smirked at Slappy as the livid living doll lumbered closer. "Here! A gift!"he laughed and threw Lizzy's shirt and bra at him.

The clothing hit him in the face but Slappy didn't even flinch.

Francesco frowned,"Well, you're no fun."He pouted.

Slappy looked to his helpless,unconscious friend in his ex-master's hold. Her suspenders barely offered her upper body any modesty. Though, they conveniently covered her intimate tips. Only a fraction of warm tan halos peeked from the very edge of the straps. "You're gonna give her back NOW, Francesco."

"Are you enjoying you delusion of freedom, Slappy? Because I find it very repugnant."Francesco sneered.

Slappy stood at eye level with Frank, not a foot away from him. Green eyes met red in a standoff of wills.

Slappy wondered how he could have been so blind to what was going on. He should have figured everything out ages ago. He inwardly chastised himself for getting so many others involved in this virulent family affair. But there was no time for self pity now...Slappy stared deeply, searching, then fixated on what he felt was a tiny glimmer deep in Francesco chaotic red pools. "I'm going to get you out of there, Wally. I promise I will, if you can only hold on a little longer, brother."he said with deep sincerity, hoping his words reached him.

"Don't waste your breath, fool."Francesco spat at Slappy.

Slappy's eyes narrowed,"I wasn't talking to you. If I were, there are only four words I'd have to say.."

Francesco quirked a brow,"Humor me..what would those be?"

Slappy's eyes suddenly broke contact and he looked shocked at something behind Frank on his left.

Francesco turned and looked left on instinct.

Slappy snatched Lizzy back by her suspenders with his right hand and slammed his left fist with all the power he could muster in a split second into Francesco shocked face. There was a loud 'crack' and Francesco went flying like a rag doll across the median, the opposite adjacent highway, and into the far embankment leaving a trail of of green fire in his wake.

Slappy shook the flames from his fist,"Kansas City Shuffle, Motherfucker."

He tossed Lizzy over his shoulder and turned around to find himself confronted with the remaining puppets. They glared at him from the road with red eyes. He glared back, daring them to make the first move.

The puppets moved in unison taking their first step to seal their elder brother's doom.

Slappy grit his teeth then gave a primal yell at them. The ground shivered and the green flames in his eyes burned furious.

They paused a moment as the red lights in their eyes reversed a fraction. They held perfectly still, then just as quickly as it subsided, the light overwhelmed them again and they moved forward.

_Fuck. This wasn't going to go well..._

Slappy readied himself for the long struggle and hoped he would find a good hiding spot for Lizzy at some point.

A loud noise caught all of their attention. Something they should have heard much sooner. A white Honda accord came barreling down the emergency lane. Doll parts went flying as the car plowed into the living puppets.

Slappy watched in wonder as the car screeched to a stop further down the lane. Two of the dolls had become mangled, and the other two lay motionless in the path behind the vehicle. Suddenly the car audibly switched gears and quickly reversed, running over each puppet again until coming to a stop near Slappy.

The passenger window rolled down and he saw air bags being pushed down,"Get in the car!"a familiar voice yelled.

Slappy balked. "Dennis!?" Sure enough, his goodie-goodie doppelganger stared back at him once the air bag was out of the way. In the backseat Brittany,Molly, and Mr. Molloy sat up from a huddle position.

"Come on! Hurry it up, Slappy!"Dennis yelled and pressed a button to unlock the doors.

Slappy didn't need to be told a third time. He ran to the car and carefully got in the passengers seat, being sure to knock the deflated air bag out of the way. "Thanks, Dennis."

From his elevated seat, Dennis did a double take at Lizzy in Slappy's arms,"Why is she topless!?"

Slappy shut the car door and gave him an indignant look,"I didn't do it!"

"Oh my god! Is Lizzy okay!?"Molly cried.

"Is she dead?"Brittany asked, straining against her safety belt to look.

"Brittany!"Molly scolded her.

Slappy cradled the girl in his lap. "She's just unconscious. She'll be okay. Let's just get outta here before those things and Frank recover! "

Dennis grumbled then shifted into drive. "Try to wake her up on the way back to the house. She most likely has a concussion...best case scenario..."He said then tore ass across the median and into the other highway that had become mostly desolate, then roared down the road.

Dennis sighed. "I really don't think my insurance is going to cover this."

Slappy laughed,"You should see what happened to my car."

* * *

She woke, warm and on her side. "Ohhh...my head..."Lizzy whimpered and reached up to touch the source of the pain.

"Don't touch."said a calm masculine voice. His small hand gently redirected her hand back down. "I just finished some stitches back there."

"You're..."it took her a moment to remember him even as she squinted at him,"..Dennis..Amy's dummy."

He scoffed quietly,"I am Amy's_ friend_."

"I..I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."Lizzy apologized quickly.

He removed the now dirtied white towel from beneath Lizzy's head carefully, then slipped a new fresh one in it's place. "It's alright. How are you feeling, Lizzy?"

The bedroom was dim and it was the same one she had been staying in since she had arrived at the Molloy house. A realization struck her,"How did I get here..? Wasn't I just with Slappy?"

Dennis nodded and stood. He pulled a fleece lined blanket up over her shoulder. "You were. Can you try to remember what happened?"

Lizzy looked at him in the low light. The lamp in the hall cast a light that caught just enough in his eyes to reveal their rich brown hues. She couldn't explain it, but looking into them made her feel calm. "I..sure. I can try."

"Is Lizzy awake..?"a soft sweet voice asked. Margo stepped into the room and looked to Dennis who happily motioned to Lizzy.

Lizzy looked at Margo. Boy was she a sight for sore eyes,"Hey."

"Liz-zy!"she cried and stumbled over her own feet in haste to be at her side.

"Whoa!"Dennis said moving to catch the unsteady girl. "I don't want another patient on my hands."he said goodheartedly. He moved out of her way as she righted herself, so she could be at Lizzy's bedside.

"Oh my god! Are you okay? Do you hurt?"she asked as she dropped to her knees beside the bed.

"A little..."She lied. Lizzy reached over and Margo took her hand with her petite one. "Its better now, though."

Margo held her hand tighter. "You had me so worried.."

Lizzy squeezed her hand. "I'm okay."

Margo motioned to Dennis. "That's thanks to Dennis. He was quite heroic from what I hear."

He laughed softly. "I don't think it can be classified as heroic if you hit someone with a car."

Lizzy blinked slowly. Her head resonated with a dull ache and her eyes had a hard time focusing. "Wow..I don't remember that.."

Dennis nodded. "Good, you shouldn't. You were already unconscious at the time."

Lizzy shut her eyes and held her breath as another wave pain radiated through her skull. "Oh man.."

Margo immediately took notice. "Lizzy?"

"My head hurts."

"Where?"Dennis asked calmly as he came to her side once more.

"Everywhere."

Dennis took a pen light out of his pants pocket and checked her eyes, much to Lizzy's chagrin. "You, from what I can tell, didn't fracture your skull, but it's very dangerous to sustain two head injuries so close together.."he clicked the light off and dropped the pen back in his pocket. "I'd take you to the hospital, but Slappy says that it isn't safe to leave." He didn't like having to trust Slappy on this one, but he made a fairly convincing argument in the car. He looked to Margo,"We need to keep her awake for the next four hours. I'll go get some medicine for her pain." With that Dennis left the room.

Lizzy's eyes watered with pain and she squeezed Margo's hand for comfort.

"Oh Lizzy, your hands are so cold."

Lizzy gave her a crooked smile. "Cold hands, warm heart."

Margo sighed. "That saying is over used."

Lizzy closed her eyes, shutting out the painful light. "In your case, it's true."

Margo blushed. "Head trauma makes you a real sweet talker, you know that?"

A grin crept across Lizzy's face. "I'm not always?"

"Maybe..."Margo giggled then she bit her bottom lip cutely. "I like all the things your mouth can do."

It took Lizzy a hard second to process what Margo had said, then she laughed.

"A-hem.."Dennis stood in the doorway holding a small black leather bag. "I hope I'm not interrupting."

Margo and Lizzy looked at him. "Nah, we're just being silly."

Dennis walked over and set his things on an antique trunk at the foot of the bed. "Aren't you girls a little young for this kind of innuendo?"Dennis asked them, amused.

"I have no idea what you're talking about.."Margo giggled then tickled Lizzy's palm with her pink fingernails.

Lizzy shivered then laughed,"Cut that out, you know I'm ticklish there. Bad girl."

Margo stuck out the tip of her pink tongue at her.

"_Oh yeah._."Lizzy said in a mocking voice like MachoMan,"You know that's what I like. Just the tip, baby."

Dennis shook his head and held back a laugh,"Well okay then.."

"That sounded better in your head, didn't it?"Margo asked Lizzy, grinning ear to ear.

Lizzy cringed and took a sharp inhale of breath through gritted teeth. "My head..."she moaned.

"Squeeze Margo's hand and I can give you something to make that go away."Dennis said as he slipped on a pair of sterile gloves.

Margo looked at Liz with aqua eyes full of sympathy and concern.

She smiled and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "I'm okay."

Dennis opened a alcohol pad then wiped the crook of Lizzy's arm.

"Umm..are you giving me a shot?"Lizzy asked nervously.

"Yes. Do you have any allergies?" he asked before slipping on a pair of sterile gloves.

"No...I just don't like needles."

He pressed on the crook of her arm and found a vein easily. "Ah, you have lovely veins, my dear..."he said then pulled out a small, thin, rectangular box from his bag.

"So are you like a walking pharmacy?" Lizzy joked.

Dennis glanced at her. "I may have appropriated a few things from the hospital while I was training there. For emergencies." He opened the box and took out a filled skinny syringe. "This should make you feel much better."

Margo felt Lizzy's grip tighten. "It's okay, Liz."

Lizzy looked to Margo and, for a few moments, nothing else existed.

"There we go." Dennis said as he capped the mercifully thin needle. "You two lovebirds can be silly to your hearts content." He slipped the half full syringe back into it's box, which he immediately wrote Lizzy's name on. " Just don't walk around or lay your head on your wound. Basically, stay in bed. I'll come back in a little while to check up on you." He put the box in his bag then smiled at them. "I'll be sure to knock first, though." Dennis left, closing the door behind him. He would have to remember to check Lizzy's reflexes for any neurological damage later.


	37. Chapter 37

Ouch ouch ouch ouch!"Ray chanted as Amy mercilessly brushed his damp hair.

"Use conditioner, dude!"Amy said in a scolding tone as she passed the wide square brush through his golden tangles.

"I will next time if you leave me any hair to wash!"he cried.

Amy giggled and pulled his hair into a short ponytail. "I left some, I promise."she said as she looped the hair tie a few times. "There you go!"

Ray half smiled and rubbed the back of his head,"Thanks..?"

Amy rolled her eyes and smirked. "I'm going to go check up on Slappy." She gave Ray a chaste kiss on the cheek, before hopping off the bed and hurrying out the door.

* * *

"Very good. You're a natural white witch, Molly."Slappy complimented her as she set up a wicker and twine warding effigy on the northern edge of the Molloy property.

"Thank you.."She said shyly, looking down at her handy work. Having Slappy in his human form made her feel more comfortable around him.

"What about me?"Brittany pipped. She stood beside her attempted effigy that tumbled over and fell apart as if on cue.

Slappy paused and stared at it. "Still better than Amy."he shrugged. "It didn't burst into flames."

"Flames? Where!?"Amy said jogging up to them from the house, sounding more excited than she should.

Slappy watched her as she approached. Her presence seemed to have some odd effect on him. As pissed off or humiliated as she could make him, being close to her gave him a deeper underling peace he would rather ignore was there. As so, he couldn't hold back the relief he felt by her arrival. He sighed and finally felt himself relax, "There aren't any flames and don't go starting any either, slave."

Amy puffed out her cheeks and pouted,"I'm not your slave! You're supposed to be _mine_, actually."

"Are you done feeling sorry for yourself now?"he asked dismissively as he leafed through a book bound in white birch wood.

"Oh shut up."she fussed at him, hands on her hips. He looked a hell of a lot better than he did an hour before. She nearly fainted when he returned in his mannequin form looking like a piece of Swiss cheese. She wondered if he still would look that way when he shifted out of his human illusion.

"Do you think these will be enough to keep that asshole you were telling us about away?"Brittany asked as she collected her mess from the lawn.

"I believe they will hold until we can get an experienced witch here to set up stronger wards."he said as he walked to the cobblestone sidewalk in front of the house.

Molly helped Brittany pick up her failed effigy. Brittany held a bundle of wicker at her side and gave a tiny alerting wave to Slappy and Amy. "Okay. If we're done then I'm going inside. I need to poop."

Molly sighed and turned bright pink, embarrassed by her friend.

"Okay!" Amy waved at them as they walked to the front door. "Have fun, Brit! Think of me!"

Slappy gave Amy a flat look then covered his face with his hand and shook his head.

Brittany laughed. "I will!"

Before Molly went inside she looked at Slappy. He looked back at her and they both had the same long suffering expressions on their faces.

It made them both smile.

When the girls were inside, he slipped a white linen glove on his left hand. He re-opened his book and stared tossing rock salt from a pouch at his hip onto the old stone sidewalk.

Amy joined him and listened in awe as he chanted flawless, rolling Latin. She imagined he had a lovely singing voice with the way each word transitioned fluidly into the next. She followed him around the perimeter of the house as he administered the magic. After an indeterminate amount of time he finally came to an end. She blinked herself out of a trance. "Are you done, mas-S-Slappy!"Amy said, disturbed by how close she had just come to calling him master.

Not that he noticed.

Slappy stood in a slumped posture, panting. He tucked the book into the breast of his vest and looked down at his gloved hand. It shook badly and he opened and closed it painfully. That glove had to come off. "Amy..take this glove off of me." Slappy steadied his wrist with his other hand for her.

"What..? Okay..."She said then stood in front of him and removed the garment in one tug. "FUCK A DUCK! Your hand!"she shrieked.

"I'm still a demon. The wards I set were bound to hurt me too." He sighed a shuddering breath and staggered back towards the house, holding his blackened hand ahead of him.

Amy was quickly at his side, urging him to lean on her. "You're spent, Slappy. Let me help you inside. You gotta rest, man."

Slappy resisted her for a fraction of a second before just giving in. If she could carry Ray, she could carry him. He slumped hopelessly onto her and she caught him seamlessly. "Rest sounds good..."

Amy smiled half heartedly as she hauled him back into the Molloy house. "I think I have an idea of how to fix your hand."she said as she came to the front door.

Slappy groaned and held up his good hand. The front door opened for them. "Don't think Amy. It doesn't suit you.."

"I'm gonna let that slide because you're hurt..."Amy said in a dangerous tone as she walked them in.

The door closed behind them and a set of blood red eyes watched from the attic of a house across the street.

* * *

Amy tossed the spell book from Slappy's vest onto the night stand and gently helped him onto the bed,"So, now that you killed the Molloy's grass and added weird lawn ornaments, what happens next?"

Slappy groaned and shut his eyes. When he reopened them he had switched back to his dummy form,"Like you said, I need some rest."he said and began to attempt toeing his shoes off. "I feel like I aged a hundred years in the past three hours..."

"Hey! Why didn't you change back to your real form sooner instead of making me drag your big human ass to bed?"Amy asked looking miffed.

Slappy couldn't help himself and sneered,"Thought you could use the exercise. Even if your saddlebags are quite comfortable, all that baby fat is just going to be regular fat soon enough."

Amy gasped indignantly and grasped her hips,"It isn't fat! It's meat! And-"Amy blushed and looked away from his smirking gaze,"..and girls are supposed to be soft there, ya' Pinocchio knock-off!"

Slappy chuckled and managed one of his shoes off. "Ahhh..."He sighed and laid his head back on the soft pillow. "I'm exhausted."

"You're a jerk.."Amy huffed as she plopped down on the bed beside him, making him bounce up.

"GAH! Watch it woman!"he scolded her.

Amy giggled devilishly,"Oh hush. You're fine."

Slappy pointed at his injured body and held up his hand,"I'm already damaged goods. If you accidentally sit on me with that ass, I'm done for."

"Why you little-!"Amy snatched up a tassels decorative pillow and hit him a few times.

"Stop it! Cut it out already!"he yelled as he shielded himself with his arms.

"I'm not fat! I'm well padded in strategic areas!"

"Pfft!"he scoffed, holding back laughter,"Okay, sure, you're '_well padded_'..."he conceded.

Amy tossed the pillow to the foot of the bed,"No more cracks about my shape or I'll show you how dangerous my curves can really be! Got it?"

Slappy sat up and slipped his second shoe off,"Alright..I'm sorry."

Amy was surprised by the apology, but pleased all the same. She smiled then took his shoes from him,"That's better." She stood up and took the shoes to set them at the door.

"I hadn't mean for our conversation to go all pear shaped like that.."he snicked as he removed his vest.

Amy spun around,"Pear shaped!?"she shrieked then threw his shoe at him. "The part in your hair makes your head look like a lopsided butt!"

Slappy dodged his shoe and heard it hit the wall behind him. "Your face is so ugly that the first thing people ask your momma is why she fed you after midnight!"

Amy growled then threw the second shoe as hard as she could at his head.

Slappy caught it in a quick motion then cried out in pain.

Amy's eyes widened,"Slappy?"

The shoe fell to the floor and he gripped his right wrist tightly. He had grabbed the stupid shoe with his burnt hand. "_I'm fine.._"a forcibly muttered.

She was at the bedside in a moment. Amy looked at her thumb. It had had one of those little bits of dried skin beside her nail that stuck up.  
_Perfect._  
She brought it to her mouth and bit it carefully between her teeth, then pulled.

The pain coursed all throughout him. The fact he could preform the sealing, protective wards was proof enough of his spiritual duality. The rebounding burn evidence of the demon side. It made the burn almost comforting in that aspect, but mostly it hurt like hell.

A drop of blood 'pliped' on his scorched palm.

He looked at Amy in surprise.

She spit the tiny runner of mostly dead skin out and squeezed the blood from her thumb. "It is ridiculous how much these things can bleed."She said as the blood dropped into Slappy's palm.

The feeling was instantly soothing. Virgin blood was always the best. "Amy, you didn't have to do that. It would have healed on it's own.."Slappy said, but was actually quite grateful she had.

"I'm not going to let a friend suffer if there's something I can do about it." Amy touched her thumb to his fingertips, giving each and few good drops. "Don't forget to tell me '_when_', by the way.."

It didn't burn anymore, it was just warm.._.alive_. Slappy clasped his hand shut. "That's enough."he said quickly. With all the rediscovered memories floating around in his head, blood on his hands would assuredly dredge up some unpleasant ones. That and he had enough of feeling human. "Thank you."

"Okie dokie, you're welcome."she said then cupped her hand under her thumb to catch any drips. "I'm gonna go ask Dennis for a band-aid."

"You're on speaking terms again?"he asked.

Amy looked at her feet sheepishly,"Well, I still don't know what to do,"she confessed,"..so I'm going to just face him and let my instincts take care of the rest!"she declared confidently, then gave him a bloody thumbs up.

"Ummm...good luck with that." If it had anything to do with Amy, he was fairly certain it would go down in flames.

"Alrighty. I'll be back in a little bit. Get some rest." Amy smiled warmly at him then clicked off the light before she left. "Goodnight, Slappy. Sweet dreams."

He watched her go, then slipped off his pants and got under the covers. "Yeah...sweet dreams."

After everything that happened today, he was sure that nightmares were all that awaited him.

* * *

"Oh."Amy chirped as she came to abrupt halt just after she left the bedroom.

Seemed that Dennis had come to her.

She stared down at him and sheepishly grinned. "One more time?"she asked mentioning her bleeding thumb in his direction.

He stared at her, his expression more unreadable than ever. "You're unbelievable." Dennis sighed. "Alright...just..follow me." He turned and motioned for her to follow him.

Amy quickly scurried after him. "Listen, I'm sorry. Please give me another chance."

"I'd rather not talk about this in the hall, Amy." Dennis opened the door to the bathroom at the end of the hall and held it for her.

Amy walked in and straight over to the toilet. She closed the lid to sit down.

Dennis closed the door. "What do you want, Amy?"He asked coolly before opening his black bag.

Amy's shrugged ,"I guess, just, that I'm sorry. I hurt you and that isn't okay."

Dennis took out a roll of medical tape, cotton balls, and an alcohol pad. "I guess that's nice to hear, Amy."

"But..?"

Dennis handed her the cotton balls. "But it won't change my mind. Press those on your thumb."

Amy did as told then gave Dennis a forlorn look. "You're still leaving?"

"When all this is over." Dennis opened the alcohol pad with a frustrated sigh,"I'm done Amy. I can't deal with any of this madness anymore."

Amy tilted her head,"Madness? What do you mean?"

Dennis turned back to her and shooed her hand and cotton balls away from her thumb with a wave of his wrist. "All I want is an ordinary life." He turned her hand palm up and wrapped the disinfecting pad around her thumb, carefully cleaning it. "I want to wake up, do my IT job, go to school, peacefully enjoy the company of friends, come home to someone I love, and watch tv with them until we fall asleep."he said concisely.

Amy scrunched up her nose in pain at the sting of alcohol on the fresh injury. "No offense, but that sounds kinda boring."

Dennis rolled his eyes then pulled a strip of medical tape. "You know, that's your problem, Amy. I don't think you appreciate the life you have."

"What?" Amy scoffed,"Yeah. I do."

"Do you really?"he asked her as he tore off the strip from the roll. "Because it seems like you don't understand the beauty of the ordinary moments in life."

"They're called ordinary because they're BORING."she bemoaned as he fitted the bandage around her thumb.

"Why does everything have to be exciting? Why does it have to be life threatening for you to see any value in it?"

Amy poked out her bottom lip,"That isn't true."

Dennis raised a wooden brow at her. "Really?"

"Maybe, I like you patching me up." Amy shrugged. "Maybe it's the only way I've been able to tear you away from Sara and spend time with me instead.."

Dennis was quiet. He turned away from her and threw the dirtied cotton balls in the trash can by the toilet. "So, it's my fault, huh?"

She hadn't meant it like that or maybe she did and she was just a jerk.  
Of course it wasn't his fault.  
Amy slid off the toilet and sat on her knees so she would be closer to eye level with him. "No. It's not..."she said softly and pressed a palm to his back. She smiled as a thought crossed her mind,"I could have just kidnapped you to get your attention if I got really desperate."

Dennis wasn't very amused.

Amy placed her hands in her lap and picked at a frayed fingernail. "To be honest...I don't think I can help myself from getting physical, Denny. I feel this overwhelming need to do prove my point when somebody confronts me or is being unfair."

"Do you always have to get violent?"he asked as he put the tape away.

Amy wore a guilty expression and scratched the back of her neck,"I usually yell first, but yeah. I feel like there's no other option when people aren't listening."

He leaned his back against the sink and crossed his arms, still not looking at her. "Amy, you are going to get yourself killed. Please. I'm begging you to stop putting yourself in danger."

Amy grasped his hand,"If I promise to, will you stay?"

"Amy.." Dennis was surprised. Was she really saying she would change for him? It was sweet, but he'd been lied to before.."Why do you want me to stay?"

"Denny, I can't imagine you leaving and that I'd never see you again. Well...I guess I can, but it's really really sad."

Dennis gave her a sharp look. "Are you sure you don't just want me around because I take care of you?"

Amy frowned comically hard at him,"What are you insinuating?! That I'm lying about how I feel for some personal gain? Dennis! Friends don't do that!"

"It didn't stop, Sara."he blurted out. He hugged his arms and sighed.

"What...exactly what kind of relationship did you have with her? I mean...she's a bitch but, sometimes I thought that Sara might really care for you as much as I do. That made it a little easier to see you with her. But I never saw you laughing or really talking with her much.." Amy sat down and rested her back against the sink beside him. "Mostly, you were just, like...her slave or something."

"I'm so stupid..."he sighed in just above a whisper. "I should have known she could never love me like I love her.." He gripped the fabric of his sleeves tightly between his articulated wooden fingers,"..even if she said she did."

Amy sat up on her knees and turned to him, taking him into her arms. He went rigid, but she only held him closer, as if the closeness could make him feel her sincerity. "I'm not lying when I say_ I_ love you. You know that, right? It's not romantic love, but it's still strong."

Amy's hair smelled sweet and tickled his face as she held him securely to her living body. This attention from her was unexpected and somewhat unwelcome. Such acceptance after a hard rejection felt something like ice water on a scalding burn. "She was different when we were alone. She did talk to me. She laughed. She cried. She was..just her. It was like..there was a Sara she could only be with me." He closed his eyes then laid his cheek on Amy's shoulder. "I guess it made me feel special."

"You are special!"Amy exclaimed and buried her face in his hair,"God, Denny! You are so special! She's the biggest ding-dong on the planet!"

Dennis couldn't help but laugh. "I'm in love with a ding-dong,huh?"

"You're still in love with her?"Amy asked incredulously. "Why?"

"I can't stop. I know it's stupid...isn't it?" Dennis relaxed in her arms and patted Amy's back. "I can't be anything to her at all, now."

Amy released him from her embrace and looked into his eyes. "She's stupid. You're wonderful, Dennis. You are so special and not just because of what you are on the outside." Amy brushed his soft brown bangs from his eyes. "What you are up here,"she said pointing at his forehead, then placed her hand over where his heart would be," and in here that are so amazing."

Dennis shook his head and moved her hand from his chest. "I don't understand what it is you see, Amy. All I see is a fool."

Amy smiled half heartedly and shrugged,"Everybody is a fool sometimes. I'd know that better than most." Amy looked him over and took his hands with hers. "What I see is someone who is dedicated to everything he takes on. Someone who is always meticulous with others feelings and well-being. Always gentle. Always kind."

Everything she was saying he knew she meant, but it honestly sounded arbitrary and rehearsed to him. He looked into her big hazel-green eyes and his demeanor softened. Amy really did mean well. He managed to lighten his expression for her. "I'm sorry I was so harsh with you."

Amy smiled back,"It was tough love, don't worry about it."

He looked down at her hand,"Is your thumb okay?"

Amy looked too, and stuck it up, wiggling it around. "Kinda sore like my other boo-boos, but not too bad. Why the hell do these things sting so much anyway?"

Dennis pointed at it,"Well, it's because of th-"

There was a sudden, loud, reverberating boom that shook the house and cut Dennis off.

Amy looked at him,"What was that?"

* * *

**A BIG thank you to everyone who has commented and let me know that you think! ;w;**

**Guest - Yes, Lizzy was topless, but covered up by a blanket. :)**


	38. Chapter 38

The front door cracked with a great force. It dangled from it's hinges then fell from the latch onto the floor with a clatter.

Jackson strode in briskly trailing smoke from his singed jacket. His footfalls were heavy as he walked straight to a terrified copper haired girl.

Molly stood against the living room wall. She stared wide eyed at the imposing figure closing in on her. She finally found her voice then screamed and turned and ran.

Jackson seized her easily by the back of her pink sweater, causing the girl to tumble off her feet and to the floor before him. Twisting and turning she managed to slip out of her shirt and escape him.

Molly quickly bolted down the hall to her father and Brittany waiting at the end of it. Brittany caught Molly as she rushed into her arms, colliding with her and making them hit the wall. "Are you okay!?" Brittany asked as she helped Molly steady herself.

"Molly!?" Mr. Molloy took one look at his daughter then to the intruder. "GET OUT!" he roared then barreled down the hallway to intercept Jackson.

Molly looked back down the hall at her father as he tackled the intruder. "He- he just burst through the door! I thought Slappy said we were safe!?"

"Where is Slappy anyway!?" Brittany exclaimed.

Mr. Molloy's bristly face was bright red and his eyes wide as he heaved the heavy mahogany chair over his head and slammed across Jackson's side. "_LEAVE!_ GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!"

Jackson stumbled from side to side as the wild and burly man assaulted him with the chair over and over again. Jackson took the beating, figuring that he could just wait for the man to tire himself out. This would be much less tolerable if his master hadn't given him a potion that made all pain dull down to little more than an ache. He certainly wouldn't have been able to get through the wards Slappy had set up.  
He reflected for a moment of events just before this sound beating he was receiving.  
His master couldn't get through the wards, nor could the living puppets. His master had summoned him from his bed to once again be used.  
Another volley of hits and he felt vaguely aware of how the potions, or _drugs_ as they really were, left him feeling disconnected from his body. He tried not to think of how badly he really had been burned or about why he could barely feel his left leg any longer. Instead, he pictured the women he had left behind, still trapped, as the chair smashed across his face.

"GET OUT!" Mr. Molloy bellowed.

Medley was all alone in his room. What if she rolled off and onto the floor?

Jackson caught the chair as it came down on him again. He glared down into Mr. Molloy's eyes. He roughly yanked the chair away and threw it like nothing into the kitchen. The older man looked to be having a difficult time catching his breath. It would be simple enough to kill him now.

Mr. Molloy stumbled back and quickly turned and grabbed for a brass lamp on a hallway table littered with family photos.

Jackson drew a curved silver dagger from the scabbard at his thigh. He viciously yanked the man back by his thick pontytail, exposing the his throat.

Mr. Molloy immediately dropped the lamp and, gripping the intruder's arm with both hands, found himself futilely wrestling with the arm reaching across his throat. He noticed his daughter down the hall looking at him in pure horror.  
A wave of guilt flooded him. How could he have spent so little time with his child? It had been foolishness that he had ever thought there would always be more time later.  
"MOLLY! LOOK AWAY! LOOK AWAY!"he yelled to her with the last of his strength.

Jackson felt the familiar pressure at the end of the blade and pulled slowly.

Brittany jumped on Molly and drug her away from the scene.

Mr. Molloy felt eternally grateful to his daughter's friend before he closed his eyes.

There was a sharp jerk and Mr. Molloy fell to the floor.

On the floor Mr. Molloy instinctively reached for the wound and found it short. It was only at the left side of his neck where his fingers searched and he found his pulse unsevered. There was warm blood pouring where his neck didn't feel quite right, but the feeling of relief made him want to cry.

"Are you okay Mr. Molloy?" Ray growled. He stood over Mr. Molloy and hissed in pain at his forearm. It had an ugly, bubbling cut across it from where he had yanked that hooded bastard's arm away from Molly's father's throat at the last second. The punch made him drop Mr. Molloy. He snarled his silvery fangs at Jackson as he shook the pain off.

Jackson glared right back at the blonde man before him. He righted the cartilage in his nose with a quiet snap and blew out a glob of blood from his airway as he assessed his new opponent. It was obviously a monster..maybe a vampire..?

"Why the hell are you busting up in here and cutting people up for, huh?" Ray asked as he stalked around the stationary man. "Just being an asshole or do you have a reason?"

Jackson watched the half dressed creature circling him carefully. "I'm here for Slappy."

Ray smirked ruefully. "Can't have him. Get out."

Jackson slipped his knife back in it's scabbard. "I'm not leaving without the doll."

Ray's bare silently padded over the various broken items in the living room without injury. He blew his gold hair away from his red eyes. "Then we've got a problem."

"I don't have the luxury of failing my master." Jackson tilted his head and cracked his neck. "I'll warn you that I've been instructed to kill each and every one of you until he gives himself up. Save yourselves and do the right thing. Believe me when I say that little monster isn't worth your lives."

Ray stopped and stood on a broken piece of the front door. The moonlight from outside giving his skin a silver gleam. He spied Molly's father behind Jackson get up and run stumble away down the hall. "HEY!" Ray barked at Jackson to hold his attention. "Are you really so confident that you can beat me? Sorry, but if you want to get to anyone else in this house _or_ to Slappy, you'll have to go through me first."

Jackson placed his hand on his whip. "So be it."

* * *

"Slappy! Wake up!" Amy shook Slappy's unresponsive form violently. "There's some crazy hooded guy smacking people around and trashing the place! _Slappy!_"

Dennis caught her by her elbow,"Amy, he's not going to wake up! We have to get everyone out of here! Whatever Slappy did out there didn't work and now we are on our own!"

Amy stopped and stared hard at her almost lifeless Slappy. She sighed and laid him back down on the bed gently. "Okay..I'll go."

Dennis froze in bafflement. "What?"

"I'll go handle that guy, too! I brought Betty with me!"Amy announced as she hurried over to her pile of stuff in the corner of the room.

Dennis stared at her with feelings of disgust and disbelief. "AMY."

Amy pulled her aluminum Louisville slugger out of the pile. The grip, knob, and handle were wrapped up with black electrical tape and she had written "BlAcK BeTtY" in black permanent marker on the barrel. She gave Betty a few practice swings then beamed with pride at Dennis.

He stared hard at her.

Amy felt her ego deflate like a popped balloon under his gaze. "What?"

Dennis sighed and stares hard at her. "You _promised_.."

Amy's cheeks flushed with color. She had promised him that she would stop engaging in fights if she didn't have to. "Oh yeah." Amy looked away and bit her bottom lip. "Sorry, Dennis."she said and set the bat back down. "What do we do then?"

Just then Brittany and Molly came running into the room.

"Girls? Are you okay?"Dennis asked quickly.

Brittany looked down at him wild eyed. "HOLY SHIT. Dennis, that guy slit Molly's dad's throat! We gotta get out of here, now!"

Dennis mouth hung open. "Oh god, Molly.."he gasped and looked to Molly.

She fell against the wall and slid down to the floor. Molly's usually rosy complexion had turned deathly pale and her breathing came in rapid shallow breaths. She stared straight forward with a horrified looked etched into her features.

Molly was in shock.

Dennis first impulse was to soothe her..to give her some comfort, but right now he couldn't. Dennis trembled and clenched his fists. "Amy, take Betty, Slappy, and the girls. Find Lizzy and Margo. _All_ of you get out of here. Whenever Slappy wakes up, he'll know what to do."

"Denny?" Amy steepled her brows. "What are you going to do..!?"

Dennis stepped into the hall. There was a loud commotion coming from the living room and kitchen, but the path to the back of the house was clear. "Don't worry about it. It sounds like Ray has that guy occupied for now. Just get going!"he said and motion them to go out the door.

Brittany helped Molly back to her feet,"Come on Mol...we gotta go."

Molly silently obeyed, clinging tightly to Brittany's hand as if it were a life line.

Amy hefted Slappy securely onto her back and held Betty with her other hand like a club. She looked back at Dennis with concern. "You'll be right behind us, won't you?"

Dennis stare up at her with his clear brown eyes for a moment. He couldn't make her any promises. "Get going."

Amy bit her bottom lip and made a frustrated whimper. She wanted so badly to stay and fight, but she couldn't risk going back on her promise and losing Dennis. "Be careful okay!?" Amy shouted then turned and hurried down the hall. "Come on girls! Dennis will be right behind us!"

Brittany lead Molly out of the room. She glanced back for a uncertain moment,"Bye, Dennis."

He gave her a little wave, then the part of the hall wall behind him gave way as Ray hit the adjacent wall.

Molly screamed and clung to Brittany, making her fall.

Dennis pushed a large piece of drywall off of himself. "Run girls! We've got this!" Dennis yelled to them then ducked back into the bathroom.

Amy saw Ray. He looked really beaten up. "Ray are you okay!?"Amy yelled to him.

Ray shook the insulation out of his hair and jumped back up. He glanced over at Amy and saw Slappy on her back. "Amy! He's after Slappy! Get him as far away from here as possible!"

Amy held tighter to Slappy. "Got it! Just hold him off for a little longer, then get away from that guy, Ray!" Amy quickly helped Brittany and Molly up.

Jackson stepped through the rubble and looked straight at Amy. His grip tightened on his whip. "Hand him over now and nobody else has to get hurt, I swear to it."

"Nope!"Amy said then turned on her heel and ran away into the house with Brittany and Molly.

Jackson took one step after them before getting punched in the face.

Ray grappled Jackson around the waist to the ground. "Forget about me!?"he growled as hooked his arm under his leg.

Jackson slammed the brunt handle of his whip against Ray's head and was surprised when he wasn't knocked out cold.

Ray was seeing stars and snarled at Jackson,"That really hurt, you son of a bitch!" Ray grabbed Jackson's wrist as he brought it down again. If got hit like that again it would be lights out. Struggling, they writhed against one another on the floor, neither gaining an upper hand.

In the turmoil Ray rent back Jackson's cowl. "You're human!?"he balked.

Jackson gave a primal yell and head butted Ray.

Dazed, Ray felt a hard kick in the gut, then the distinctive feeling of being thrown. When he hit the ground, debris rained down on top of him. "_S-shit._." He held his head and clamored to his feet. There was no time to react before Jackson's iron grip closed around his throat and lifted him up the wall. Ray choked for air and kicked aimlessly. The crushing grip on his throat was just that..crushing. Jackson was trying to crush Ray's wind pipe or snap his neck with brute force. He glared at him defiantly and tensed up his neck muscles, fighting his hold.

"_Let me help._"a voice from within Ray spoke to him urgently.

"N-no!"Ray responded quickly.

"_He is stronger than just you, but not us! Let me help you before we die!_"

His grip on Jackson's hands got weaker. "Y-you'll just try to take me over like you did before.."

"_Maybe, but your chances are still better if we fight this guy together now! We can worry about who should be dominant later!_"

"H-help..c-can't..breathe.." Ray's eyes drifted shut.

Suddenly, the hold on his throat softened and fell away. Ray gasped and coughed as he caught his breath, somehow still able to stand. Ray watched in bewilderment as the intruder staggered on his feet then collapsed to the floor.

"Did...you do that..?"Ray asked his demon in a hoarse voice.

"_No..._"

"Yeah, it was me." Dennis stood nearby holding an empty syringe and wearing his medical bags on his body like a pack mule. "I didn't inject him with enough to kill him, but when he wakes up he's going to have a debilitating headache." Dennis capped the needle then tossed it in the trash. "Are you okay,Ray?"

Ray rubbed his throat tenderly. "Yeah..I think so." He stepped over the crumpled form at his feet to Dennis. "Thanks.."

"I think we should still leave. Molly's father was in the bathroom. I put a patch on him, but he needs to go to a hospital for proper stitching and neck support."

"_We can't."_ Ray coughed then nudged Jackson's head with his bare foot. "Dennis, this guy said that he was told to kill all of us until he got Slappy. Whoever this _'master'_ of his is, that guy will stop at nothing to get what he wants."

"So, he'll kill Molly's father if we send him to a hospital.." Dennis glared down at Jackson.

Ray followed Dennis gaze. "Yeah, just to mess with Slappy. I don't believe any one in this house is safe anymore."

Dennis was quietly contemplative for a moment. "Maybe we should just give him Slappy, Ray."

Ray glared at Dennis. "What? I know you two don't get on well, but you can't be serious."

"Is he worth losing Amy over?"Dennis hissed.

Ray paused as he thought. He quickly made a swiping motion with his hand. "We aren't losing anybody. There is a way out of this we just have to find it."

Dennis looked back at Jackson. It would be much easier to just be rid of Slappy. For whatever reason that this guy wanted him, Dennis was fairly certain that Slappy deserved whatever was coming to him. If he were honest, if it hadn't been for Lizzy being in danger, he wouldn't have ruined his car saving Slappy a few hours before.  
"Fine. Let's find the girls. I sent Mr. Molloy after them."

Ray shook his head. "You go. I'm going to keep an eye on this guy."

Dennis lifted a brow, skeptical of Ray. He knew he lived off of human blood..."He should be out for a while, but some people are exceptions to the rules." He began to walk away, then turned back to Ray. "Don't eat him either."

Ray laughed, his silver teeth gleaming in the dim light. "Nah..why would I do that?"

Dennis stared at him flatly. "He's poisonous right now. Don't eat him."

Ray flustered,"I'm not gonna eat him!"

Dennis turned and walked away waving over his shoulder,"Okay. _Try_ not to kill him either. I'm not in the business of murder..'_do no harm_' and all that.."

After Dennis was out of sight Ray nudged Jackson's face again with his foot. "Geeze..Dennis can be a wet blanket."

* * *

Thanks so much to everyone who has commented. IT MEANS A LOT. ;x;

AD7 - Thanks! No offense taken! Sorry, I'll go back and put warnings up on a few of the chapters besides the one with Ray and Slappy. xwx ;;

RedDahlias - Thanks so much! TwT


	39. Chapter 39

Brittany stood at the small window in the attic staring Dow at the street below. "Holy crap cakes...look at em' all."

Living puppets lined the proximity of the house in the dim street lamp light.

Brittany scratched her neck and sneered,"What are they waiting for?"

"They aren't. They can't get in. "Amy said and set Slappy down in a comfortable looking arm chair. "They would all be in the house tearing us apart right now if it weren't for what Slappy did earlier." She situated him carefully in a restful position. "He_ did_ do them right. They're holding. "

Brittany shivered as the mental image of history class came to mind. The memory of how people were torn apart by horses as punishment in the past. She waved to Amy across the room. "Thanks for the nightmare fuel,Amy. I just remembered how messed up fifth grade was."

Brittany looked to Molly. They had all been so relieved when her dad showed up. Molly looked much better now. She and her father sat on a small sofa across the room. His head was in her lap while she applied pressure to his wound with an old cloth map.

Margo came over to them from where she and Lizzy had set up a tech base for Lizzy to work from. "Mr. Molloy, Lizzy wants to know what the oldest book is in your collection is."

He thought for a moment then pointed weakly to the top of a rickety old bookshelf squeezed between two shorter new ones. "It's up there. I keep it out of sight, just in case. It will be wrapped in a thick linen cloth...but.."he shakily took hold of Margo's tiny wrist,"..there is another one beside it. Don't touch it. It's a grimore wrapped in human flesh."

"Thank you."Margo swallowed dryly. She patted his burly hand and help him set it back down. Margo smiled sympathetically at Molly.

Molly pointed to the back of room,"There's a step ladder in the corner over there, Margo."

Brittany shifted on her feet and pressed closer to the window until her nose smudged the glass. "They're just standing there like a bunch of tourists..."

Amy's interest was picked and she grabbed up Betty and joined Brittany. "Lemme see." She scooted in beside her and looked at the gathering of creatures, visible only from their faint silhouettes and glinting glass eyes. "Ha ha, fuckin' losers. Can't get through Slappy's hard work can ya'?"Amy set down Black Betty and flipped them off with both hands,"Go home and watch bad TV like everybody else at night, assholes!"

The living puppets turned their heads in one accord and looked straight at Amy and Brittany.

The girls both let out yelps and jumped back in shock. They scrambled away from the window with haste. Both girls shivered and squirmed as if someone had put worms down their shirts.

Amy jumped in place a few times. "EWWWW!? Why did they do that!?"

"So freaking creepy! Do you think they're still looking!?"Brittany asked Amy morbidly. There was a knock at the door and Amy and Brittany screamed in surprise.

"Girls? Amy? Are you up here?"Dennis friendly voice called from the other side of the door.

"Dennis!" Amy quickly ran to the door and opened it.

"What are you doing in here?"he asked immediately.

Amy dropped to her knees and hugged him. "The house is completely surrounded by huge creepy puppets! We didn't get any further than the driveway and had to come back."

Brittany anxiously moved from one foot to the other, "Do you think those things are gonna kill us?"

"Brittany!"Molly squeaked impatiently at her.

"What!?"Brittany hugged her arms and sulked.

Dennis patted Amy on the shoulder then hurried over to Molly. "How is Mr. Molloy?" Dennis took his bags off and set up a med station. "Amy, I need fresh towels and bottled water if you can find it. Take Betty and get some for me please."

Amy grabbed up Betty. "What happened to that big guy?"

Dennis shrugged. "I gave him a heavy sedative."

Amy nodded and twirled her bat. "You got it, Denny."

"Check up on Ray, too."He added quickly.

"I'll be right back." Amy grinned then hurried out the door and down the stairs.

As soon as Amy was gone Dennis stopped what he was doing.

He walked over to where Slappy sat comatose. "Everybody...I couldn't talk about this with Amy here, but there's something we need to discuss.."

* * *

"Ray? You down here?"Amy called as she stepped over the dark rubble that was now the hallway.

Ray stood in the barely illuminated living room. "Amy!? You came back?"he asked in confusion.

She was massively relieved to see him and hurried over to him. "Never left! I guess you noticed that we're surrounded.."she said and motioned out the front door to the street.

Ray patted Amy on the arm and sighed,"Damn..I was hoping you had gotten past them.." Ray glanced around and his expression turned to concern. "Where's Slappy?"

Amy stepped closer to Ray as she watched the shifting crowd still accumulating in the street. "He's safe in the attic with everyone else. Dennis sent me down for some stuff to patch Molly's dad up with."

Ray could smell fear coming from her. He wrapped an arm around Amy's shoulders and pulled her closer to him. "Maybe we can just wait them out. You know, until sunrise."

Without thinking Amy wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. "I don't think we have another choice."

"Those things give me the creeps." Ray said after looking at them for a long pause.

Amy squinted her eyes at the crowd as a tuft of auburn hair stood out to her. She held tighter to Ray. "Whoa...who's that guy?"

Ray had spotted him a few seconds before Amy and had hoped she wouldn't. He had a very dark aura that gave Ray a good idea as to who he was. "He wasn't there before...but I think that's_ him_."

Amy scrunched up her nose. "He's looking right at us.."

"He's creepier than the dolls. Step away from the door." Ray ushered them away from the open doorway quickly.

Amy was moving backwards and stepped on something squishy, losing her footing. "Whoa!"

"Watch your step!"he said as he caught her. He glared at Jackson's still unconscious body on the floor. "Lots of trash on the floor."

Amy hadn't noticed him on the floor before. She gave Ray a look. "That's a little mean."

Ray feigned hurt. "Look at what he did to my face. He's mean."

"Ouch. Poor Ray. He messed you up pretty bad."she teased. "Think a snack would help?"

Now probably wasn't the time for a snack...but it sounded too tempting. "M-maybe...if you're offering."he said reluctantly.

Amy smiled and took her shirt down to her collar bone. "Make it quick so I can get the towels up to Denny."

Who was he to say no? Ray put a guiding had to her back and lead her to the dusty couch. "Sit down."

Amy flopped down and dust went up in a cloud around her. She coughed and waved her hand in the air trying to fan it away. Ray laughed and sat down beside her. "Ready?"

Amy coughed then tilted her head to the side. "Bite me, haha."she joked.

Ray smirked then pulled her hair away from her neck with one hand. "I won't take much."he breathed against her jawline then gave her neck a long, tingling lick along her jugular.

"It's cold.."She said with a tiny shiver.

"Hold onto me."He instructed her.

Amy bit her bottom lip and held onto his arms. She mentally braced herself for the initial sting to come.

Ray paused a moment to breathe her in before he sunk his silver fangs into her.

She tensed beneath him before calming and rubbing his right forearm as he fed. It didn't hurt much at all this time. Her neck felt warm and tingly while he drank of her in a much less desperate way than the times before. She almost felt peaceful being so close to him like this. She felt sorry that it was over when he pulled away.

Ray licked and kissed the leftover blood from her neck. Amy lay with her eyes closed against him in a quasi embrace. She had a dreamy look on her face that mirrored his own post feeding high. He smiled at her. "Thank you."

"You're done..?"she mumbled.

"Yep." He brushed his thumb over the redness where his mouth had been. " There's a little bit of a hickey, but you can cover it up with your hair."

Amy rubbed it herself and laughed lazily. "Nah, I want everybody to think I'm a slut."

Ray shrugged. "Everybody already knows I am."

Amy laughed and gave a coy smile. "Not true. Only me and Slappy know."

He stared into her eyes. He could taste her and feel her in his veins.  
He could love her in a much more than friends way if she let him.  
Ray brushed her hair over the mark he had left on her. "You should get back up to Dennis. It's probably safer up there for you."

Amy stood up and placed a kiss on Ray's forehead. "Look at that, you're pretty again. I suppose I can leave you alone." Amy patted his shoulder then turned and carefully navigated throughout the dark debris that littered the floor toward the kitchen. Suddenly there was a crushing pain at her ankle and she fell. "What the-!? Oh shit!"

Ray gasped and jumped from the couch. "Amy!"

She landed hard on the messy floor. "Fuck!"

Jackson yanked on the girl's ankle hard, dragging her through the debris and beneath him. He pressed his bulk down on her and snaked his arm around her throat.

Ray yanked Jackson from the floor by the back of his jacket. "Drop her now!"he roared then shoved him into the wall.

Jackson glared at Ray with a dangerous glint in his eyes that reflected in the silver blade at Amy's throat. "You won't be able to save this one demon, so give me the goddamned doll!"he roared.

"_No_!"Amy yelled and struggled, only to superficially cut her neck on the razor shape edge twice. "GRAAHH! _You dick_! Let me go!"

Ray motioned his hands calmly to her,"Amy, stop struggling.."

"Don't give him Slappy, Ray!"she yelled.

Ray and Jackson glared at one another. Ray clenched his jaw,"I-I won't .."

Jackson narrowed his eyes dangerously at Ray. "I'm giving you _ten seconds_ to make up your mind." He tightened his crushing hold on Amy, causing her to choke in pain. "Ten."

Ray's eyes widened as panic took hold. What was he supposed to do? "Damn you! Just let her go!"

"Nine."

Ray snarled and gnashed his fangs in frustration at Jackson,"She's innocent! Let her go!"

"Eight."

Ray made to grab for his arm.

Jackson plunged the tip of the curved blade into the flesh behind her ear,halting Ray's advance. "Seven!"

Amy gasped shallowly. Her blood ran cold, suddenly aware of how close she was to death. Amy didn't move. She looked at Ray and wondered if his would be the last face she would ever see.

"Six."

Ray's jaw went slack in horror. He looked from Amy's mortified expression to Jackson's cold stare. Ray was at a horrible loss. He couldn't let his best friend die, but he couldn't give up Slappy either.

"Five."

Amy's expression turned as she watched Ray's eyes transition back to blue. "Ray.._no_."she muttered.

"Four."

Ray held out his hands in surrender and pleaded. "Please stop. She's just a kid.."

"Three."

Ray covered his face and screamed into his hands,"I can't give him to you!"

"Two!"Jackson barked angrily at the indecisive demon.

Amy knew her time was up. She shut her eyes tightly and yelled to Ray,"Take care of Slappy and kick this guy's ass for me okay!?"

Jackson eyes grew colder. "One."

"No!"Ray shrieked.

"Stop! He's right here!" Dennis yelled loudly from the rubble scattered hall.

Jackson stilled his blade tenuously and eyed the curious unfamiliar dummy.

Behind Dennis, Molly held Slappy in her arms.

"Dennis!? Amy stared at him wildly as her mind put the pieces together. "No! You can't!"

"Shut up, Amy." Dennis took a few slow steps forward.

"He's our friend, you can't _do_ _this_!"she yelled at him.

"No. He's your friend...if that. He isn't ours."Dennis corrected her as Molly followed him closely. He regarded Jackson with a nod. "We will trade him, just let her go."

Amy couldn't believe what was happening. She thrashed her body trying to break free of Jackson. "Ray! Don't let them!"she shrieked desperately.

Dennis looked at the distraught demon. "Ray, step aside. This isn't your decision anymore."he said, absolving him of the responsibility.

"I.." His internal struggle wrestled a few more painful moments before Ray realized that he wasn't strong enough to make the decision himself. So he left it to Dennis. He looked at Amy and whispered,"I'm sorry, Amy." The look on her face broke his heart and made him feel ashamed.

"You.."Jackson said sharply to Ray,"..go over there with the other two."

Ray hung his head and obeyed.

Jackson turned his attention to Molly when Ray was a safe distance away. "Throw the doll at my feet."

"Let Amy go first."Dennis demanded.

Amy yelled in aggravation. "There isn't a point to this! I swear, the second you let me go, I'll turn right back around and fight for him! I won't quit! If you don't kill me, I will follow you the ends of the earth and back again! I'll never stop! I'd rather die than to betray a friend!"

Jackson scoffed at her. He removed his arm from around her neck, then swiftly kicked her in the small of her back. Amy went flying to the floor with a yelp. He flipped the knife in his hand, pinching the tip of the blade in his fingers. He took aim at Amy on the ground. "Now give me the doll!"

Molly looked down at Slappy and felt a deep pang of guilt. "I'm so sorry...please understand.." Molly closed her eyes then lifted Slappy high above her head and threw him as hard as she could to the intruder. "Take him and go!"

In an almost ballet-like turn, Jackson fluidly sheathed his blade then snatched Slappy out of the air. He looked the doll over briefly then tucked him under his arm. He relaxed, now that he could finally go back home. He looked to Dennis who was glaring daggers at him.  
"The living puppets can't function properly in the early morning and midday sun. You can leave this place then, but I have no doubt they will come back tomorrow after sunset. I would recommend getting as far away from here as possible. It might buy you some time." Jackson curtly replaced his hood and turned to leave. He suddenly felt a heavy tug at his left leg.

Amy clung tenaciously to his leg and yelled up at him, "I wont let you take him dammit!"

Dennis quickly ran to her, grabbing her around her waist. "Amy, stop it! Slappy wouldn't want you getting yourself killed!"he yelled trying to pull her away.

"Yes he would!"she yelled back.

Dennis pulled on her harder,"You promised me, Amy!"

"I'm sorry! This is one of those "I have no other options" moments!"

"Don't give me that crap!" Dennis screamed, livid. "You have the option to let go of his leg right now!"

Amy glanced back at Dennis with baleful eyes,"This is serious! He's gonna take him and bad things will happen to Slappy if we don't save him now!"

"Let him go Amy!"Dennis implored her, not sure whether he was referring to Jackson or Slappy.

"I made a promise when I said the words.."she said solemnly and trembled. "Come what may, everything that happens, him and his well being are my responsibility!"she said with tears welling in her eyes. "Denny...I can't just let him go..."

"Get off." Jackson growled and kicked his leg high and hard, sending both her and Dennis in the air.

Ray quickly caught them. Dennis dropped from around Amy's waist to the floor.

"I have responsibilities someone I love, too."he said gruffly then exited through the ruined front door.

"NO!"Amy screamed and moved to go after him but Ray's arms closed around her firmly. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, RAY!?"

Ray held her close. "We'll get him back, I promise."he said quietly.

Amy kicked and wriggled and pushed against Ray,"WE CAN SAVE HIM NOW!"

Ray restrained her tightly and said firmly into her ear,"_WE CAN'T_."

Amy watched aghast as the living puppets parted for Jackson on the street.


	40. Chapter 40

"NO!" Amy took all her might and hit Ray in the groin. He cried out in pain in such a way that Amy was instantly remorseful, but his hold on her loosened and she broke free immediately, bolting out the door.

For a moment that seemed to last much longer, the world seemed to slow and bend around the edges. She could hear her friends behind her calling her name as she ran. In the parted crowd stood the redheaded man. Jackson handed Slappy over to him and he gave a wicked smile. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end.

"SLAPPY!"

Frank looked right at the ragamuffin barreling toward him. His red eyes flashed in satisfaction at her. "Bye bye." A powerful rush of wind surged from nowhere and focus around him and Jackson in a whirlwind.

Amy was knocked to the asphalt as the wind howled and screamed around her. Determined, Amy began clawing her way across the street, trying to stay flush to the ground. "GIVE HIM BACK!"she screamed, her hair lashing at her face.

Frank's blood red eyes stayed fixed on her as the wind closed in. She was yelling something at him, but he couldn't hear her over the wind tunnel. He watched in fascination as she crept closer and closer while the spell took it's time to cast. He squinted his eyes at her. He could vaguely place the girl's face from years ago in the backseat of Slappy's mind. "Why is she trying so hard for him? _Who is she.._"he asked aloud but unheard in the maelstrom. His eyes narrowed at her until they were only ruby slits.

Amy was so close, but still so far. The wind hammered her down to the ground then tried to snatch her up within it. All she could do was reach out to Slappy and hope it wouldn't be the last time she would see him. "SLAPPY!"she cried out mournfully before there was a deafening thunder clap, then they were gone.

The wind stopped as suddenly as it came and Amy lay stunned in the street.

Amy stared at the empty spot where Slappy and his captors had suddenly vanished.

"_No.._"she breathed.

Amy roughly pushed herself from the ground and clamored the few steps to stand in the exact spot where had been. Her breath quickened and she looked at the ground frantically. "_**No!No!No!No!**_"Amy dropped to her knees and screamed. "_**FUCK!**_"

Panting, she stared up at the pitch black sky. She bit back frustrated tears and smoothed down her messy hair. She gave another aggravated, wrathful yell then pounded her fist on the ground. "I have go get him!"she resolved to herself as the ringing in her ears died down and she heard footsteps approach her from behind. "You are all _bastards!_ I'll never forgive any of you for this-!"she raged and jumped to her feet, turning angrily to face them.

Cold glass eyes stared back at her.

She took a step back and sweat trickled from her forehead. To both her left and right she was surrounded by living puppets. Beyond them, Ray and Dennis looked on helplessly from within the safety of the wards.

"AMY! RUN!"Dennis cried out.

The orchestra of the puppets began chattering their hinged wooden jaws at her and closing in.

"N-NOPE!"Amy staggered backwards in haste, then turned and dashed to the nearest house. "NOPE NOPE NOPE!

She was surprised when the door was already open, but didn't think anything else of it. She burst through the front door and slammed it behind her. She turned the lock and took a step back. From the windows she could see the silhouettes of the puppets. Amy checked her surroundings for anything to use as a weapon. There was hockey equipment on a rack in the foyer. Amy made a grab for the hockey stick as the puppets pounded on the door with crushing force. Amy snatched up the stick just before they busted in the front windows and began climbing in.

"Oh goddammit!" Amy ran into the kitchen. She turned the corner and collided with someone. from the floor she stared up at the homeowner. It took all of a second for her to realize what she had done.

She had lead death straight into this person's home.

Amy quickly jumped to her feet and grabbed the man by his arm,"We have to get out of here! Is there anyone else here!?"

The middle-aged man didn't respond.

Amy stared an expensive second longer at him.

He dropped his chin and his jaw clacked open, she could see her shock reflected in his glassy eyes. Amy screamed and scrambled away from him, his jaw chattering as she left. "FUCK THIS SHIT!" Amy plowed through the house, slamming into the backdoor in her haste.

She had wondered why no one had called the police considering the huge gathering of people around Molly's house. Or when they were doing all that magic stuff on the front lawn. How many humans had been turned in this neighborhood without them knowing?

Her heart pounded in her ears as she fumbled with the lock then flung the door open. Her breath caught in her chest at the sight of nine or so sets of gleaming glass eyes staring back at her from the small back yard. "No..oh no..." She turned back, but was overshadowed by a tall, thin puppet. Amy weight her options quickly, then jumped out the back door before the puppet could close it's hands on her.

It had come down to fight of flight. The puppets drew in on her, giving her no escape. That made her choice easy enough, and to be honest, it suited her just fine. There was no way in Dante's Nine Circles of Hell, that she wouldn't go down without one hell of a fight! Amy choked the end of the stick, rearing back and drawing the hockey stick high above her. She brought it down ferociously on the nearest puppet.

The hockey stick broke.

Amy stumbled and fell to the ground. She stared in horror at the broken stick in her hand, then to the un-phased puppet looming over her.

All her courage abandoned her in an instant. "_It-it wasn't supposed to be this way.._"she whimpered shrinking against the ground trying to take every last inch of distance between her and her very painful death. The back of her head gently bumped onto the cold damp grass, a stark contrast to her burning body. "..I'm not supposed to die like this..!" Amy gasped and covered her face in fear and shame.

She was supposed to die in some crazy epic way, not cowering in some strangers backyard like a fool.

The tall thin puppet dropped down over her, his legs straddled over her hips.

Amy flinched with a quivering gasp. She understood now what everyone had been trying to tell her. She wasn't as much of a bad-ass as she thought she was. She was an inexperienced idiot, spouting off ignorant claims of over self confidence.

Cold fingers wrapped around her throat.

"No-!" Amy squirmed on her back, trying to wriggle away.

Cold hands clamped down on her shoulders and pulled her back.

Amy let out a little shriek and tried to curl up into a ball, but the hands pinned her down on her back. She began hyperventilating and grasped at the puppet's wrists, pointlessly trying to remove them. "Don't..please, don't.."she begged, her eyes half open and clouded with tears.

She was going to die.

Amy thought of how she had spent her last days.  
She regretted fighting with Dennis.  
She regretted that she wouldn't be able to keep her word and save Slappy.  
She regretted not listening to Ray.  
She regretted how much she was going to miss them...or never have a chance to have them in her thoughts again...because she would be dead.

"I remember _you_..."the puppet said like an accusation.

Amy caught her breath and blinked away tears enough that she could see. She whimpered in the back of her throat at the sight of stark red eyes staring down at her.

"Yes..."Francesco purred. "..Amy.." He leaned in until the puppet was nose to nose with her. "You were his second."

Her vision was filled with his red eyes, she hiccuped and with a trembling voice echoed him,"..s-second..?"

"The other one was much prettier."he said dead pan.

"Where is Slappy?"she asked unable to filter herself at that moment.

He tightened the grip on her shoulders. "Why would you care?"he asked darkly.

Amy moaned in pain and wriggled to no avail. Amy tried to push the pain away before she answered. "I..."she stopped herself before she could say the words that came to her mind. All things considered, it was ridiculous to the extent that she felt her real reason. Amy came up with the next thought,"..I made a promise. I can't let you h-hurt him."she shivered as the eyes narrowed at her. Amy closed her eyes and turned her head away from the scrutinizing glare. "Give him back...please."she begged meekly, only able to bring her voice above a whisper.

Francesco felt something akin to endearment,"Oh, you sweet little fool..."he chuckled. He pulled the puppet's upper body away from her then looked her over lewdly,"I think you might be fun. Would you like to come play with me...?"

Amy suddenly felt inexplicably nauseated,"N-no.."

The puppet tilted it's head in curiosity. "Slappy is here. We could all play together."

The thought of being close to Slappy sparked a little glimmer of hope in her heart. Maybe if they were together, they could figure something out? Amy sniffled and forced herself to meet his gaze again. "What game..."

The puppet's eyebrows lifted as it's grin seemed to widen. "Oh...I have lots of games."

Amy was calming down and asked a bold question. "Wha-what do I get if I win..?"

"You won't."he replied sternly.

She looked at him, unable to hide the ill placed faith in her eyes. "But if I did...would you let Slappy go?"

This girl suddenly became irresistible to him. That little glimmer of hope was too tempting to not play with. He looked her in the eyes and lied, "If you won, I suppose I'd give you anything."

With death being the only other option, Amy decided,"...I'll play with you."

He giggled in a high pitched tinny way. Francesco was going to have so much fun destroying her.

* * *

"RAY STOP!" Dennis screamed at the frantic blonde.

Ray was repulsed with a sickening crack as the wards Slappy had set converged with their magic on him again. He was catapulted backwards and landed violently on the grass. His body convulsed and contorted in pain until he could finally let out a horrible wail.

Dennis looked at him with the most rueful look his wooden expression could muster. "Ray, you can't get through and I have no idea how to remove the magic. Not that I even would, because it's the only thing keeping the rest of us alive."

Ray recoiled on his side, moaning in agony from the pain coursing through him to his very core. He balled up and hugged his arms, fearing that if he didn't somehow he would literally fall to pieces.

Dennis walked to Ray and touched his shoulder. The demon immediately began to vomit up blood. Dennis recoiled at the smell alone. It was the hot, metallic, sickly sweet smell of burned blood. The black substance poured and spurted from Ray's mouth and Dennis took a step back. "I'll try, okay?"

Ray coughed and gagged.

Dennis shivered then turned to the precipice of where the salt speckled the ground. He froze.  
_Amy was out there. Why was he hesitating?_  
Dennis noticed movement at his side. A moment of fear shot through him before he realized it was his own hand. He lifted it palm up and stared at it as it trembled.  
_He was scared. He didn't want to get killed by those things._  
Dennis clenched his fist to stop it's shaking.  
"Amy.." he breathed.  
Dennis shut his eyes and ran forward, bracing for a possible push back. Dennis fell to the ground with a sharp 'clunk'. Dennis opened his eyes and gasped. He had tumbled over the curb! He had made it through! The wards hadn't effected him at all. He looked at Ray still shivering on the ground.

Black tears and red blood trickled down his face as his rose red eyes settled on the little ventriloquist dummy in the road. "_...what are you waiting for...?_"he hissed.

Dennis looked over his shoulder at the gathering of living puppets swarming the house behind him. He quickly rose to his feet and gave Ray a curt nod before dashing to the crowd. The realist in him mind was screaming at him that this was pure suicide. He stood absolutely no chance against this many assailants. Dennis shook his head as if doing so would dislodge his thoughts. "There isn't much I can do..but I can be there for her. Even if I can't do anything else, I can be with her at the end!"he shouted and rushed into the midst of the puppets. "AMY!?"he called out to her as he wove through the puppets. "Amy!? Where are you?"  
He pushed through them until he was inside the house. "Amy..?" He looked around frantically for her then notice a breeze. He run to the back door that hung half open. He burst through the door and stumbled. "AMY!?"

"Dennis!?"Amy gasped and instinctively took a step towards him. A wooden arm looped itself around her middle possessively and yanked her back.

"Where do you think you're going?" the possessed living puppet hissed to her as he pulled her close. Her head hit his shoulder and he squeezed her tightly. "We have a deal, remember?"

Amy struggled against his confining embrace,"The deal is that we'll play, but you don't own me! So lighten your grip, buddy!"

Francesco laughed gleefully. He grabbed her by her jawline, forcing her to look into his eyes. "Oh my, but don't you have spunk? It'll be so much fun breaking you...my...'_Amy_' wasn't it?"

Amy spit in his face.

Francesco sat in shock for a fraction of a second. His possessed puppet's eyes blazed red and he threw her roughly to the ground face first. "Did you just spit in my face!?"

Amy's face hit the cold ground in bruising force. She quickly drug herself a few feet away from him then glared back at him as she shakily rose to her feet. "Good fucking luck if that's your plan. I don't break easy." She wiped her cheek, smearing her bare forearm with dirt and blood. She looked at it then smirked at Francesco. "I'm well padded."

Dennis stared in wide eyed confusion,"What deal!? Amy, what have you done?" He was quickly at her side and took her hand with his.

Francesco gave the unfamiliar dummy before him a hard scrutinizing glare. "Who are you? _I_ didn't make _you_.."

Amy instantly stood protectively in front of Dennis. "He's mine! I've had him since I was little! Ya' wanna fight about it!?"

Francesco blinked once at her, then burst out laughing. "I guess I can forgive you for your little outburst, _Amy_." He pointed to the vampire puppet's face. "This isn't even my face, so I'll let it slide." He saunter in an overly expressive manner to her. "So, shall we?"he said offering her his hand.

Amy sneered in disgust and looked down to Dennis. "If I play his game he promised to let Slappy go. I have to do this, Denny. It's my only chance." She chewed her bottom lip then placed her hand on Francesco's.

"AMY NO! You can't, Slappy isn't worth it!" Dennis held Amy's other hand as tightly as he could without hurting her.

"I already agreed to it! I'm sorry, Denny..please understand." she looked down at him with guilty tears in her eyes. "I love you."

"Then take me with you!"he cried.

Francesco jerked Amy forward, crashing her body into his surrogate one. He swiftly kicked the little doll square in it's chest, knocking it out of the girl's grip. "You aren't invited!"

"DENNY!" Amy shrieked, reaching back out to him, now sprawled out on the ground.

Francesco held her tightly to him with both arms around her waist. He laughed as she began to pummel him with her small fists. "I don't even feel that, stupid!"

"HOW DARE YOU HURT HIM, YOU RED-EYED SHIT!"Amy raged as a great wind kicked up as before. It engulfed them quickly and Amy looked back to her friend just to see him staring on in horror at her. "DENNIS! DON'T WORRY ABOUT ME! I WON'T LOSE!"she yelled as loudly as she could, hoping he could hear her.

The wind rushed harder than ever, then there was a thunder clap, and they were gone.

* * *

Dennis sat stunned on the ground, staring at the spot where they were. "Oh god...Amy."

A chattering pulled him from his morbid reverie. He looked up and all around him living puppets were chattering their jaws at one another as if they were talking. One looked down at him. I looked like a person mixed with a velociraptor. Dennis stared back, fearing the worst, but it looked away from him a moment later.  
_I_

_t was disinterested in him._

In fact, as he made his way out of the the house and back to the Molloy home many of the living puppets looked at him but none spared him a second glance.

_Did they not care now because their master had what he wanted, or was it because he was a puppet as well?_

Dennis didn't dwell on it as he ran through the wards to Ray who lay still as the grave on the front lawn. "Ray!?"he called to him, but there was no response. Dennis thought to check for a pulse out of habit, but on Ray it was pointless.  
"Ray...can you hear me?" He shook Ray by his shoulder trying to get a response but nothing came. He rolled Ray onto his back and felt a grim feeling wash over him. Dennis dropped to his knees then sat beside Ray. He had never felt so deeply useless or defeated in his life. He hugged his knees to his face and fisted his hands in his downy brown hair. His small body shook with emotion and since he couldn't cry he screamed instead. He kept screaming until Molly came out to get him.

* * *

**Red Daliha - All 37!? Holy crap! ;w; I'm so flattered, I don't know what to say!?**

**Goosebumps - Not on holiday, just having trouble getting the chapters out, lol. They'll be coming a bit slow from now on. ;_;**

**AD7 - MWAHAHAHAHAHA. *w***

**Lord Canine - Jackson would be a dried out like a raisin and Ray would be all like," He was like this before." Dennis would be quite annoyed. w And YES! DICKS EVERYWHERE! /w/;;;**

**MyAsia - Thank you so much! I hope this is a little better! ;w;**

**Guest - lol! I got it! XD**


	41. Chapter 41

_**Okay, posting now. Fixing errors later. QmQ;;;**_

* * *

"We gotta hide the body." Lizzy tossed another towel over Ray's body. His eyes were half lidded and clouded with the absence of any spark of life. His porcelain white skin was splattered with black blood. Lizzy sighed, her warm breath billowing white in the cold night air.

Brittany stood by, shining her cell phone's low light setting on Ray. Her teeth chattered behind her lips and she rubbed her arm for warmth with her free hand. She hadn't thought they would be outside for long and had only worn a dark purple camisole and jeans. "Wasn't he already undead..?"she asked.

"Slappy said he was a 'watcher' which is some kind of _"unholy blend of vampire, incubus, and zombie with a demon at the core._" Lizzy responded quasi-quoting Slappy. It was unexpected that Ray would die like this. She felt bad that he was gone, or at best in an undead version of comatose, but she felt worse that she was impressed with Slappy's warding magic that did this to Ray. She stood up feeling solemn. "This is why they sent that other guy through. I can't blame them if this is what happens to demonic creatures." Ahead of them was a gathering of puppets outside the wards. "_I can't believe we let them have him..._"she said woefully under her breath.

"So, that other guy was human?"Brittany said in wonder.

"Yeah." Lizzy touched the back of her head and felt the stitches. Her head was beginning to hurt again. "I don't know if he can be revived or not." Lizzy turned to Molly and Margo who were laying out a large gnarled old rug. "Brittany you grab his other arm and help me drag him onto the rug."she said and pointed to Ray. "Margo, you and Molly keep the rug straight for us."

"Ew.."Brittany knelt down on the opposite side of Ray's body and moved the towel Lizzy had placed on him over the gore that drenched his shoulder. "What are we gonna do with him? I've never hidden a body before."

Lizzy took hold of Ray's left bicep and under arm. She nodded to Brittany who mimicked her. "We're going to put him in the Molloy's wine cellar for now." The girls grunted as they hefted up, then dragged Ray's dead weight to the rug.

"AW MAN. THAT SMELL, THO.."Brittany wheezed through gritted teeth as they finally dropped the body on the rug.

All the girls had to take a step back for fresh air. Lizzy coughed in her elbow then looked to the girls, waiting for an unspoken acknowledgment that they were ready to proceed. "Let's hope this is the only time we ever have to do this.." she pointed to the four corners on the rug,"..Brit and I will take the lead."

Together they drug the rug through the front lawn and into the house.

"UGH! Some got on me!"Brittany squealed.

"It's okay,"Molly wrapped her corner of the rug around her fist and hefted her part higher,"..we all have some on us, Brit."

Waddling backwards and doing her best not to breathe, Lizzy looked behind her as they traveled down the dark hallway to the back of the house. "Okay,straight for the trap door, girls!"

The light in the laundry room was on and Lizzy directed them to the large square hole in the floor. "Watch your step guys, these stairs are steep and narrow." Lizzy and Brittany had to squish together face to face as they carried Ray down the thin incline. Molly and Margo did the same as they finally reached the bottom of the old stone stairs and into the small forgotten wine cellar. They all grunted in relief when they set the body down in the middle of the floor.

"It smells like nail varnish remover down here."Brittany commented and cracked her neck.

Molly looked at the wine rack inset into the stoney wall behind her that ran down the length of the cellar. "I think some of the old bottles went bad."

"It'll smell like him quick enough." Lizzy said ruefully.

Margo groaned and wiped her hands on her black skirt. "I don't want to stick around to find out which is a stronger odor."

Lizzy, Molly, Margo, and Brittany quickly walked up the narrow stone stair case in single file.

"We've always kept the door to down here locked and covered with that rug. Dad told me it was a wine cellar, but I've never been down there until now." Molly said giving a glance to her clothes that, as with the other girls, were covered in black-brown smears.

"I wish I could have gotten to know him better." Margo said sadly.

"He may not be dead."Lizzy climbed out of the cellar door and moved clear of exit.

Next, Brittany came out behind Lizzy. "I don't know. He looks dead, feels dead, and totally smells dead, Liz."

Lizzy helped Margo out after Brittany. "I don't think we shouldn't at least try something to revive him."

Molly came out last into the fluorescent light, then they all helped close the heavy wooden door. Molly took the antique key from her jeans pocket to lock it.

"Wait!" Lizzy yelled suddenly. She wilted a bit at the surprised looks the girls gave her. "What if he wakes up? Don't lock it, please."

Molly felt uneasy. She really didn't think Ray was ever going to wake up, but she figured that it wouldn't hurt to leave it unlocked if it made Lizzy feel better. She slipped the key back in her pocket. "Okay."  
Lizzy breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you." There was sudden sharp pain that shot through her head. She pinched the bridge of her nose. "My headache is coming back."

Margo placed her hand on Lizzy's back, her face a mask of worry.

"Dennis is still in his room. You should probably go see him, Lizzy." Molly said and motioned them out of the laundry room.

"I don't think he wants any company right now. Do you have any ibuprofen?"Lizzy asked as they walked back toward the ruined front of the house.

"Sure. It's in the kitchen. Do you think you guys could help me prop the front door up in the door frame?" Molly asked as they began stepping over debris. Her father had shut off the circuit breaker to the front of the house, so it was dark, but they were safe from a fire hazard or electrocution.

"Yeah. We got this."Brittany said cheerfully.

The girls fumbled around in the living room for about twenty minutes trying to get the door to stay. When they finally got it, the purple haze of an October morning dusted pale on the sky.

"We've been awake for so long."Margo said wearily.

Brittany stretched her arms in a bow above her. "At least those things are backing off now." She could see the puppets out the window as they began seeking out dark shady areas to hide.

Lizzy yawned then placed her hands on her hips. "We all need to get some sleep. Let's sleep until around noon, by then Dennis said the puppets should be weakest."

Margo looked at her ruined clothes and brown fingernails. "I have to get this blood off of me. I can't stand it another minute."

"You and Lizzy can take the upstairs bath. Brit and I will use this one down here." Molly said pointing to the door in the hall with rubble in front of it.

Lizzy was about to protest about being given special treatment, since that bathroom down stairs didn't have any electricity to it anymore, but Margo pulled her by her arm towards the stairs.

"Thanks. Goodnight, guys." Margo said and led Lizzy upstairs.

"Goodnight!"Lizzy called before being pulled up to the top of the stairs.

* * *

"What are you doing!?" Kris shrieked and dashed into Jackson's room.

Rachel's brown eyes were wide as saucers at the ghostly girl's sudden outburst and advance on her. She dropped the big pillow she was about to muffle the little monster on her brother's bed wailing with. She stumbled back and tripped on her own feet, falling to the floor.

"MEDLEY?"Kris quickly gather the little one in her arms and inspected her. The infant wailed loudly gasping and choking on its tears.

Rachel quickly righted herself, dusting off her overly laced black pajamas. "It's been screaming for like an hour! I just wanted to shut it up!"

Kris's eyes flashed with the speed of the searing glare she focused on the red headed girl. "You shut up! She's just a baby!"

Rachel crinkled her nose and turned from Kris's vehement glare. She blushed all over in humiliation, it only now occurring to her that covering the baby with the pillow could have smothered it. "I don't care! It's stupid and ugly and loud! Make it shut up!"

Kris quickly collected the blanket Medley had wrapped around her and re-enveloped the child, then tossed the excess over her shoulder. "Do you know where Jackson has gone?" she asked Rachel forcefully.

Rachel crossed her arms and scoffed at Kris snootily,"I don't know! Nobody tells me anything around here! I've been all alone for-_ever_ and bored out of my mind! Uncle won't let me leave the castle anymore and all the funny ghost left, too! It's awful! And NOW that brat is here!" Rachel kicked the wall repeatedly. "I'm in hell!"

Kris had to pause a moment so she could properly digest the deep disgust she felt for Rachel. With everything Wood had done to her, she somehow managed to be even more deeply revolted by this girl. "Oh. That's too bad, I guess."she sneered then turned and raided the refrigerator for Medley's baby food.

Rachel covered her ears and huffed, "What's wrong with that thing?"

"_She's a baby._"Kris grumbled as she mixed up an odd milk concoction in a bottle.

Rachel craned her neck and squinted at the squalling bundle in Kris's arms. "It's one of those green things that used to be here. Do you know why my brother has one?"

Kris twisted on the top of the bottle and gave it one more shake before returning to the bed. "Because he saved it."

"Why? From what?" Rachel asked then rubbed the top of her foot.

Kris sighed tiredly and shook her head as she propped Medley up in the crook of her arm, then crawled onto the bed. How was she supposed to explain to her? How could the girl not realize anything until now? Kris supposed she should give her some credit for at least asking questions. "Do you really not know what's happening at all?" Kris rubbed the bottle nipple on Medley's top lip and the baby horror immediately latched on, eating greedily.

Rachel rolled her eyes and sneered at Kris. "I wouldn't ask if I knew! Like I said, nobody tells me anything!"

Kris glared at Rachel. "Shh! You're being too loud." Medley's wails were quite taxing to listen to. She would have come down to get her sooner, but she was scared of not being in the bedroom when Mr. Wood came back. After an extended period of hearing her scream, she had decided Jackson must have left again and she couldn't take it anymore. She was glad she had. She brushed her thumb against Medley's cheek as the exhausted baby tried to keep it's tired eyes open. "Your brother wants to protect you, but I think he's misguided."she said softly, almost detached. "Do you know why your brother working for Mr. Wood?"

Rachel shrugged and sat on the edge of the bed. "So, we get to live here? So, we don't have to go home or live with Slappy anymore."

"No. Why...?" Kris looked up at the girl dumbfounded. Kris lost interest in the girl's reasons and turned her attention back to the infant in her arms. "I don't know why you don't want to go home, but that isn't the reason. He did it to protect you."

"From what?" Rachel watched the clock in the room tick as the hands slowly moved.

"Mr. Wood."she responded flatly.

Rachel gasped then gawked at Kris. "What!? That's crazy! Uncle Wally loves me!"

Though Medley didn't seem disturbed by Rachel's shouting, Kris still felt her patience wearing very thin with the faux red-head. "No. He doesn't."she said firmly.

Rachel balled he tiny fists at her sides and felt tears well up in her eyes. "What do you know!?"

"Quiet down or you'll wake the baby."Kris hissed.

Rachel had to fight hard to keep from crying like a baby. She glared at Kris who was paying her no mind. "I should have known better than to talk to you. I wouldn't have if I weren't so desperate."she remarked then felt her wrath bubble higher in her throat at the condescending glance Kris gave her. "You-! You're just jealous of me! You hog Uncle all to yourself and won't let me be with him at all! Even worse, now you're trying to take my brother too!"

All the blood drained from Kris's already pale face. "What? What do you mean..?"

Rachel took a small amount of delight in the look of terror that washed over the doll-esque woman on the bed. "I saw you earlier! You came in here and stayed for a_ long time_." She wiped away her half shed tears with her arm and gave Kris a smug grin. "What were you doing with him, huh? Was it something I should tell my Uncle about?"

For a moment she was completely beside herself. She literally couldn't imagine what Wood would do to them if the girl told. "Nothing happened...you can't tell...Rachel, my god..please. He'll kill us both."

Rachel laughed mirthlessly. "Good! Then it'll just be me and Uncle Wally! I hate both of you!"she yelled then burst out of the room, intent on telling.

Kris could do nothing. She didn't move, she didn't breathe, she might have well died in the long moments that followed her initial shock, but Medley gave a contented, shuddering sigh and nuzzled closer to Kris in her sleep.

She snapped back to her senses, inhaling deeply she stared at Medley. He would kill her too. Kris set the bottle aside and got up. They had to escape. Maybe she could make it to the secret passage the Wally had told her about before Wood returned..

Kris hastily threw together some things for Medley into the same burlap sack Jackson had used. She quickly turned and collected Medley up from the bed before the entire Stagger Inn shuddered.

* * *

Amy winced in pain as ringing in her ears replaced the momentary deafness from a ground zero thunder clap.

The air around her had become warmer and the smell of incense and flame relaxed her senses. She always felt calmer when there was a fire nearby. She surveyed her surroundings and saw she was in a large spacious, dimly lit room with an enormous window overlooking what seemed to be a theme park or maybe an old village. "Whoa!" The doll that had been restraining her suddenly collapsed to the floor and nearly took Amy down with it. She staggered away from it and trotted closer to the fire place, and what looked like an couch from behind, in the center of the room. She looked around on guard searching for the auburn hair she had spotted before as she approached. "Hey! Where are ya!? I know you're here, buddy! Come out!"

Slappy popped up from the couch. He turned around and winked at her. "Heya, Amy! What took you so long?"

"Slappy!"she shouted in surprise and relief. Amy took two steps then froze. Something was off.

Slappy narrowed his eyes at her and quirked a brow. "What's wrong, aren't you glad to see me?"

Amy took a step back and stared at him sideways. "Where's the red headed creep that brought us here?"she asked darkly.

Slappy stared at her. "He's here. He isn't a creep, he's my master and yours too, so show a little respect."

Amy frowned so hard her cheeks hurt. She was not amused. "You better stop that or I'm gonna come over there and shove my hand up_ your_ ass and make you sing Dixie!"

Francesco sat up on the couch beside Slappy. "How could you tell?"he asked then made Slappy look and him and clack his jaw up and down. " I must have gotten rusty at ventriloquism during my imprisonment."

Stop doing that to Slappy! Let him go!"Amy yelled and stalked briskly up to Francesco.

He began cycling through Slappy's facial expressions, ignoring the pissed off teenager looming beside him. "I like all these improvements you gave him. The hatch in the back is much nicer than '_shoving my hand up his ass_', as you so put it."he said lifting up Slappy's shirt and vest to reveal a double door opening between his shoulder blades. "There are so many more pulls and levers..I need more fingers to control him."

"Then stop trying to! Get your hand out of him! He isn't a toy! You're violating him!"she cried angrily then grabbed hold of Slappy and tried to pull him away.

Francesco yelped and pulled him back over the back of the blue velvet couch. "OUCH! Stop it you idiot~! My hand is still in there!"

Amy held tight and grimaced at Francesco. "You had your chance, Frank!"

His red eyes widened and he gasped. "How dare you be so informal with me! You'll call me master!"he commanded her with a peevish glare.

"I'll call you dip-shit! Nobody is the master of me, ya got that!?"she growled back and yanked Slappy away.

Francesco shook his now accosted hand then soothed it with the other. "Awful girl. You'll call me master by the end of our games." He rose to his feet and scowled down at her.

Amy held Slappy to her protectively.

The large wooden doors on the right side of the room burst open and a red headed girl dressed in all black sleep wear ran in. "UNCLE WALLY! UNCLE WALLY!"she shouted at Francesco. "KRIS AND-_UGH_!"Rachel tripped over something large in the dark room. She toppled over and bruised her palms and knees on the hard wood floors.

"Rachel? I told you not to come in here!" he barked at her. "Why is everyone being so insolent lately!?"

Rachel gave a frustrated little yell then pushed herself up. She lifted her foot to kick the offending item on the floor but stopped. It was a person. "Who..is that..?"she asked staring at the burned, motionless man on the floor that wore a cloak very much like her brother's.

"Oh. This is our new friend Amy. She'll be playing some funny games with me that I'm afraid you're still to young to play, but you can watch some of them if you'd like."he replied smoothly to her.

Rachel pointed a pale finger at the man on the floor. "No...him."she said quietly.

"OH." Francesco said as if remembering something he shouldn't have forgotten. "It's alright my dear. He'll be fine, don't you worry."he said dismissively and trotted over to them.

Amy watched as the little girl used her foot to push back the cowl before Francesco got to her. The girl's shriek was high pitched and alarming to hear. The girl covered her mouth in horror at the sight of his face.

"My brother!? What happened to him!?"she screamed. She barely recognized him from all the burns and bruises. She quickly covered her nose as the smell this close was awful.

"NOW NOW...YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT, STRAWBERRY.."Francesco groused holding back his true displeasure with Rachel. He snatched her up off the floor and into his arms. He twirled her around so she couldn't see Jackson anymore. "Look at me, Strawberry."

Rachel stared at him wide eyed and frightened. "Why are your eyes red,Uncle Wally? Wh-why aren't they green?"

He stared at her evenly. "Remember how my eyes used to be blue...? Then, we kicked out Slappy and they turned green? Well, now they are red and things are about to change again."

Rachel was deeply unsettled by the red eyes and tried to look back at Jackson on the floor. "But Uncle Wally, what about Jackso-"

He gave her a sharp jerk in his arms, demanding her attention. "NO. Don't call me Wally anymore. My new name is Francesco."he corrected her firmly.

She quietly nodded then blinked and tears rolled down her slightly chubby cheeks. "Is Jack dead?"

Francesco sighed. "No, of course not, dear. Go back to your room for the night." He walked her to the door and set her down on her dainty feet. "Go on, now."

She clutched her hands to her chest and slowly turned to leave.

"What are you doing out here?"Francesco aggressively asked suddenly.

Rachel jumped in her skin and looked at him quickly. He wasn't staring at her and she followed his glare to Kris.

She stood in the hall like a deer in headlights.

"Why aren't you in our room?" He stepped outside the room. Francesco stopped and grimaced in disgust. "EW! Why are you holding that THING?"he sneered at the baby horror sleeping soundly in his pet's arms. Then he remembered,"Wait..."he looked at Rachel with an accusing stare ,"..you were saying something about Kris when you barged in. What was it?"

Rachel's eyes darted from him to Kris then back. "She...I...she wouldn't let me play with the baby we found. It was crying."she lied.

He narrowed his eyes at her. He couldn't tell if she looked so scared because she was lying or from seeing her brother mutilated. "You want to play with that thing?"he asked skeptically.

Rachel quickly scampered over to Kris and feigned interest in the baby. "It's cute...like an ugly puppy."

His glare lifted from Rachel to Kris. He glared harshly at her, looking for anything seemingly out of place in the situation. "What's in the bag."he hissed at Kris.

She looked at it then some how mustered the nerve to answer him. "J-just baby food and diapers. Y-you've been gone so long. I was b-bringing it up here to take care of..." She lifted the bag toward him. "You c-can check the bag if you like."

He narrowed his eyes to slits then snarled. "Fine. Take Rachel to her room for now and let her play with it. I'll collect you later."

Rachel grabbed onto the skirt of Kris's night dress and nudged her to go back down the hall. "Come on..let's go."she whispered hurriedly.

Kris complied quickly and they left with haste.

Francesco was no idiot. He knew something was up because those two hated each other, but he had to let it go for the moment. He turned and strode back into the room. The doors slammed shut behind him and he eyed Amy crouched down beside Jackson. "Is he dead? I'm really going to be in a bind if he's dead."

Amy glared over her shoulder at Francesco as he approached her.

He sneered at her then got a surprise when he came closer and saw Slappy on his knees in front of her. Jackson had be turned onto his back and Slappy was tenderly touching the unburned side of his face. It was almost sweet but mostly concerning. "You woke up already? That's surprising...almost as surprising as you caring about a slave, Slappy. Gone soft without me, haven't you?"

Slappy slowly looked up at Francesco. "I'm better _without you_."

"You nothing but a dummy _without me_."he said then walked over to the wet bar in the corner. It lit up with an eerie red and yellow light and he began moving the assorted bottles of spirits and potions until he made way enough to open a hidden door in the mirrored wall. Inside held three long vials of clear liquid that gave off it's own beautiful light. He selected one then began mixing a drink. "I can't believe I have to waste one of these on him.."

Amy felt oddly mesmerized but the shimmering vial. "What..is..that?"

"It's not going to work."Slappy said in just over a whisper.

Amy at Slappy quizzically, confused by his answer. "Huh? What?"

"It isn't going to work, Frank!" Slappy yelled loudly at Francesco. "You can't use it on him now. He's too close to death for you to give time back to him. You'd have to use a year of somebody else life for it to work."

Amy looked back at the vial in Frank's hand. "Is that what that is?"

"Amy." Slappy said solemnly, but he couldn't bring himself to look at her. "Give him a year of your life."

"WHAT!?'she exclaimed flabbergasted. "He kicked me! He tried to kill us and messed up Ray's pretty face! Like hell I'm saving him!"

Please...I never intended for any of this to happen. I'd do it myself if I could."

"What...?"Amy couldn't believe him. "This isn't like you at all." She glared at Francesco. "Are you trying to trick me!? Are you controlling him!?"

Francesco regarded Slappy with revulsion and disappointment. "I'm just as put off as you are. I don't know what happened to him. He's turned into something truly boring."

Amy looked at Slappy. He was hunched over on his knees with his face in his hands like a sinner at church. He trembled, when he had woken in her arms he said he felt very weak, that he hadn't rested enough, but she was sure it was from whatever was weighing down on him then.

He shook his head slowly then looked to Amy.

She suddenly felt the weight of that moment and it gave her chills. "Slappy..?"

He spoke in a vulnerable voice that took all his strength to express. "I know what I'm asking you to do...but I'm asking you to help me fix the biggest mistake I have ever made." He paused then looked back down to Jackson. "I'm sorry."

Amy had never imagined that she would ever see this side of Slappy. She had no idea that he had it in him to be so meek and it left her speechless. Amy rose to her feet. She looked at Frank and held out her wrists to him, offering herself yet again.

He gave her an incredulous stare. "REALLY? You're really going to do it just like that? What a push over!"he laughed as he put away the vial in it's hiding place. "I can't believe it, but I suppose if it saves me some trouble I'm fine with it."

Amy had to admit that she was starting to feel a little used at this point, but whatever she gave she always gave freely. "No regrets."she reminded herself as Frank came up to her with a leathery looking scroll.

"I had this all pinned up by one of my familiars for our meaty friend on the floor in regards to a transaction on a baby horror's behalf that he insists upon keeping."he explained to her as he unfurled the document for her to read. "I suppose I'll be using it on you now."

"No."Slappy swiftly interjected. He shakily rose to his feet. He felt like a puppet who had just had it's strings cut as he crookedly ambled toward them. "Amy is one of mine. I'll officiate."

Frank guffawed then looked at Amy. "It's so cute! He thinks he's people!"

Amy glared back at him,"He is, jerk."

Slappy looked up at Francesco. "I can do it. Give Amy the contract."

Frank was loosing his patience with his wayward creation. "You look like shit, Slappy. Did your brain go to shit in the past few hours, too? You're literally just a glorified doll I animated, then unfortunately happened to develop sentience. You aren't a sorcerer. You _are incapable of doing_ this, you idiot."

Slappy extended his feeble, shaking hand to Frank. "Just watch me."

Frank mouth hung open slightly at the sheer gall was demonstrating. "Alright."he scoffed, handing the scroll over to him. "I'm not even going to laugh at you when this fails."

Slappy's still blackened hand curled around the roll and he turned shakily to Amy. "We need to hurry. Take me back to Jackson."

Amy scooped up Slappy and did ask he asked. "You really do look terrible. Are you going to be okay..?"

"Yes...I'm just very tired and I feel like someone rattled my inside around.." he bemoaned.

"Heh...oh yeah..?"Amy responded nervously. Maybe she should have been gentler with him earlier.

"Set me down on his left side, you need to be on his right."he directed her. Once in place he unrolled the document on Jackson's chest. Slappy took a silver blade from the scabbard at the boy's hip. He took it and then turned it on himself.

Amy's eyes widened and she grimaced in shock when he began using the dagger to gouge out his left glass eye. "Oh god, Slappy! Geeze man, you need some help with that!?"

"No! Just catch it when it falls out!"he commanded her as he dug the blade deeper in his eye socket.

Amy's eyes watered just looking at him, but she held out her hands to catch the eye. "Why are you doing this? Is this necessary?" Slappy cried out in anguish then his eye popped out. Amy gasped and quickly caught the orb. She stared at the eye and it stared back as it misted over then turned brilliant green. "Umm...okay.."

Slappy tossed the dagger away and held his empty socket. "P-put that in your bra. Keep it safe for me."

"My bra!? Why don't I just put it in my jeans pocket!?"she asked, flustered.

He looked at her with his remaining dark blue eye and what was barely a smile in his voice. "There's more room in your bra.."

Amy blushed deeper red at his joke. "You're unbelievable.."she griped then pull her shirt open and deposited the eye in her modest cleavage collected in her sports bra. "Enjoy the view, ya perv."

Once his other eye was secure, Slappy dipped his right index finger deep into his empty socket. When he drew it out it was coated with a very dark wet substance. He quickly set to penning on the contract with his finger as he rehearsed the ritual sonnet in smooth Latin.

Francesco became more uncomfortable the longer he watched. If Slappy was really capable of _this_, then what else was he able to do? "When did you learn to do this, Slappy?"

Slappy wouldn't be distracted. He continued even as he felt increasingly ill as he inscribed the agreement. He reached the end of his written part then extended his small burned wooden hand to Amy as he began the final verse. She reached back and he pointed at her bandaged thumb, signaling that he would need more of her blood.

Amy peeled away the bandage and squeezed her thumb until the small wound split again. Slappy pantomimed over the document writing 'Amy' with his finger in the air above the space where she was to sign.

Amy's pinkie fingernail was the longest on her hand and she dipped it in her blood, then wrote her name where Slappy instructed. Amy couldn't help but smirk at her handy work. It didn't look too bad considering. I occurred to her that she couldn't read anything on the page except her name. She really had next to no idea what she was signing.

Slappy finished the sonnet drawing out the last word softly.

Amy smiled warmly at him. She knew he would have a beautiful singing voice.

Slappy had her place her hand on the space of the contract over Jackson's heart. "Amy. Repeat after me, '_Actus me invito factus non est meus actus..' "  
_

"_Actus me invito factus non est meus actus.."_she echoed surprisingly well._  
_

Slappy placed his signing hand over hers. _"Accipe hoc donum."**  
**_

Amy took a deep breath to calm her nerves._ "Accipe hoc donum."**  
**_

Slappy closed his eyes woefully conflicted. "_Consummatum est consensu._"

"_Consummatum est consensu._" The blood oozing from the wound on Amy's thumb turned clear and began to flow like water. "Uh..."Amy watched in wonder as it saturated the document, dousing Jackson beneath it. She marveled as Jackson healed before her eyes. "Oh wow, Slappy this is.."Amy suddenly became very light headed.

Slappy sloppily stood and stepped over Jackson and tried to hold Amy steady. She swayed and began to lean on him heavily.

"I feel funny. Slappy...is this normal..?"Amy felt all the color and warmth suddenly drain from her world as her eyes began to grow heavy and dark.

Slappy somehow mustered the strength to lay Amy down beside Jackson, but couldn't keep from collapsing on top of her. Laying against her chest, he could feel his other eye just beneath the fabric. Completely spent, Slappy looked up at her with his blue eye. "Thank you, Amy."he said before following her into unconsciousness.


	42. Chapter 42

Amy woke up cold. "What the hell happened..?"

Amy stared up at an overcast midday sky. Her back hurt like she had slept on rocks and the wispy clouds strewn across the panorama gave it a foreboding brown hue. Amy gave a long, drawn out moan expressing her inner discontentment and annoyance. "I keep hitting new lows lately.."she whined. "Maybe I really should reconsider my life choices..?"  
She took a deep breath and the smell of wet dog and freshly turned autumn leaves stung her senses with the sharp bite of the icy air. "Ugh..okay...gotta get up..."she groaned as she rose from the cold hard ground into a sitting position. Amy grunted and groaned miserably as she took in her surroundings.

She was in an unfamiliar town that looked like it jumped straight out of a Tim Burton film that was set in the 1700's.  
Everything on her ached and her still injured shoulder protested most of all. "Damn...I haven't been taking my meds Dennis gave me for this thing..he's going to mad." She pulled her grey, long sleeved, thermal's neckline over enough to peer at the bandaging.  
It looked worse for wear and there were fresh wet spots on the cotton and gauze where it had bled again recently. Amy stood up and made herself take a few unforgiving steps before finding her stride. "Where am I..?"

Amy meandered down the dark brown cobblestone street and surveyed the decrepit wooden cottages on either side of her. Above in a big archway was a large medieval style sign hanging from thick iron rings. "Werewolf Village..?"she read aloud.

She tilted her head from side to side, cracking her neck, trying to get the stiffness out. She was relieved when she started noticing more modern things, like aluminum trash cans, in the area. "Well, that's good." she said to herself. It was nice to know she hadn't been thrown back in time. "I must be in that theme park then."she deduced.

_"No kiddin'?" _a sarcastic voice said._  
_

Amy gasped and spun around. "Slappy!?" She searched for him, turning around in place like a dog chasing it's own tail, looking for him. "Where are you?"

_"Down here, slave."_

Amy looked down but she still didn't see him. "Where!?"she asked impatiently.

He gave an exasperated sigh._ "I'm 'enjoying the view'."_

"WAH!?" Amy yanked the neck of her shirt forward and a glowing green eye stared up at her from between her bust. "SLAPPY!?"

_"His better half, to be exact."_ he asserted._  
_

"His better half?"she echoed.

The eye flickered brighter._ "You do remember when we explained our situation to you in the car the other day, don't you?"_

Amy took a moment to recollect, then gasped,"Wait, are you saying you're-!?"

_"I'm the demon of your nightmares, baby." _he purred._  
_

"Your voice changed a little." she remarked with a twinge of disappointment.

_"You mean 'it got better'."_he crooned._  
_

Amy smirked,"You sure got a lot of ego for just an eyeball.."

The eye momentarily flared with green light._ "I'm not an eyeball, I'm just trapped in one."__  
_

It was an odd concept to her that she was carrying only _half of Slappy _and worried briefly that this could be some kind of trick_, _but somehow she could feel that this thing was him. She knew it deep in her bones, but that meant that..  
"Hey.."Amy said, taking on a more subdued tone. "What happened to your body? Is..the rest of _you.._okay?"

There was a short pause between them as the eye gazed up at her._ "No." _he replied gravely. _"Deciding to split up bought us some time, but Frank will figure out what we've done soon enough."_

"That Frank guy saw me take you, though. Don't you think he knows you're with me?" Amy felt a little confused.

"Of course. He tried to take me from you before the male slave dumped you out here."

Amy wandered down the streets of the empty village as they spoke. "Male slave? You mean..Jackson? He's okay?"

_"Yes, you saw him recover."_

"Well, that's good." Amy nodded approvingly. It would be a huge waste if he hadn't made it. "You know, I'm glad it worked, but I'm still in the dark about the relationship you have with that guy. Who is he?"

_"He was a mistake I never should have made."_

"That's really harsh..."

_"Quiet, stubborn slave."_

Amy glared down her shirt. "I am not your slave! This shit is getting really old!"

_"I told you to be quiet!"_

Amy's eye twitched and she growled in frustration. "Whatever! I don't want to fight with you right now!" She strode briskly further into the town. "So, why couldn't he take you from me?"she asked, changing the subject. He sharply laughed in the same devious, giddy way he used to when she first met Slappy.

"I invoked a little _loop-hole_ in the contract I made with Francesco over two-hundred years ago. I'd been saving for a special occasion."he said proudly.

Amy rolled her eyes. "Oh, crafty. What was it?"

"A familiar reserves the right to rebel against their previously agreed master_ if_ they feel their master has become weak or if they find a stronger one to serve."he stated quite formally.

"Aww, you think I'm a stronger master?"she asked sweetly.

The eye paused and stared up at her. The black pupil went to almost a pin prick, then expanded widely and he burst out laughing harder than she had ever heard him laugh before.

Amy blushed,"Hey! Stop laughing!"she yapped at him, but couldn't keep herself from smiling too. The usually green light he gave off took on a bright yellow hue of mirth, the feeling of it was warm against her skin. "Okay okay! It isn't that funny, sheesh.."

It took him time to compose himself. "_He..he..hee..ahh..that was good. Well done, slave. I haven't had a good hard laugh like that in a while._"

"Are you done?"she asked smirking.

"_Yes."_he said contently._  
_

Amy realized she was still pulling her shirt open so they could see one another. "Hey hold on a second.."she let it go then loosed the row of buttons on the front of her thermal shirt, revealing the eye and the little cleavage that he was nestled in. "That's better. Can you see?"

The eye looked about. His movements were like a globe within a globe and he could turn his gaze in any direction. "_Yes I suppose this will do, slave._"

"Since you keep calling me that, I know you're the same asshole I met six years ago..."Amy growled at the derogatory term," ..but, since you split up, does that mean you aren't _really_ Slappy anymore?"

He chuckled at the underlying concern he heard in her voice._ "Don't worry your simple head, my beefy slave. I'm close enough to who I was before. Like I said, you've got the best part."_

Amy halted and placed her hands on her hips. "Beefy? Seriously? You realize I can still stick you in my jeans pocket instead of letting you ride up here in between my built in air bags?"

_"Don't threaten me, slave! I'm the only hope you have of getting through Frank's games!"_he reprimanded her._  
_

"Yeah, sure..." she sighed dismissively. "So, do you know where I can get something to eat and drink around here?" She spotted a few promising cottages ahead of them in a little cul-de-sac. "Blue Moon Cafe..is it safe?"

He hummed thoughtfully._ "It would be fun to poison you, but that would be counter productive right now.."_

"Good to know I can trust you in the future."Amy said dead-pan.

_"You'll be better off finding food where there's less chance you'll be killed or turned into a werewolf. Go to the Over the Moon souvenir shop instead."_

She hustled over to the old building and was relieved to find the door already open. There was an electronic little howl when she walked in. Amy gave a little cough from the musty odor within. It was similar to outside, but a little more 'wet dog'. Everything was werewolf related and she had to admit she found it charming. Amy smiled at the rack of "I RAN Through Wolfsbane Forest!" t-shirts, then browsed through the otherwise fairly typical looking souvenir shop. "This place isn't so bad, Slappy. I might actually come for a visit once you get everything back up and running."

He looked up at her._ "I'm charging you full price and I'll have security tail you the whole time."_

Amy giggled. "Oh hey! Are those Slim Jims?"she asked enthusiastically and jogging over to a wooden stand displaying of many different jerkys. There were at least twenty different varieties, but none were properly labeled as to what kind they were. They only had different colored tabs or had little flaming pepper stickers on them.

_"Hmmm, I think those are fine. Go ahead, slave. There should also be some bottles of water from the human world in the soft drink case by the register."_

Amy picked out a hefty handful of the individually packaged treats, but mostly the ones she figured were spicy from the peppers on them. Amy tore open the plastic covering on one of the red tabbed meat sticks and chomped down on it. "Hmm, this is pretty darn good!" she announced, pleasantly surprised.  
She then made a bee-line for the soft drink case. "Holy hell! Ten bucks for a bottle of water!?"she balked. "Damn ,"she cursed," you_ are _evil..."she grumbled as she took a bottle out of the case.

He made a satisfied hum in response to what he considered quite the compliment, then added,_" I'm charging you for that, too."_

Amy laughed. "Yeah, right..."she finished the bottle and opened another. "Put it on my_ tab_."

Soon, Amy was feeling much better. Getting food and fluids in her made a big difference. Considering all the blood loss and lack of rest she had lately, she needed to recharge. Amy ate five of the hefty jerky sticks and drank nearly all the water bottles in the case by time she finally started feeling satisfied.

_"Uh oh, hey, thick slave...I just remembered something about that jerky. You don't want to eat the pink or the green ones."_

Amy looked down at the half eaten jerky in her hand and realized it was wrapped in pink tabbed plastic. "Umm...why..?"

_"The green is zombie jerky and the other is human."_

Amy stopped chewing and stared at the stick wide eyed. She felt there should be an alarming musical insert playing somewhere.

_"Slave?"_ Slappy prodded her nervously_.  
_

She glanced down at him, then back at the stick. "They ain't gettin' any deader.."she reasoned then took another bite.

* * *

**Short chapters from here out! **

**Making long ones takes too much time and I don't like spending 8+ hours straight writing something. **

**Thanks so much to everyone who reviews. I actually started this story a little over a year ago. I hope it's still interesting this far into it. **

**Thank you all so much for reading. :)  
**


	43. Chapter 43

The afternoon sun burned brilliantly just past it's apex in the clear blue skies. "Now is the time if we're going to go."Dennis stated watching the empty street outside the Molloy home.

Lizzy had her short black hair pulled back in a stubby ponytail, but her bangs still hung free of the tie. She pushed them to the side away from her reading glasses and straightened her messenger bag on her hip. "Alright. Let's go."

Their small gathering moved quietly out to the garage. Molly helped her father into Dennis' car before getting in behind him. Lizzy took the front passengers seat and Brittany sat behind the drivers seat. She had Margo sit in her lap since she was so small. It was a bit of a squeeze, but they managed.

"I'm sorry to leave such a mess of boxes in your garage, Mr. Molloy." Dennis apologized as he hopped into the booster seat in the drivers seat.

"Don't worry about it, Dennis."he replied and smiled at him in the rear view mirror.

Lizzy watched as Dennis started the car then buckled in. She had been curious as the how he was able to drive. There were some sort of pedal extensions that reached his feet and the booster seat took care of the rest.

Everyone was on edge as to whether they would be mobbed by puppets or not once they left. Dennis started the engine and backed out of the garage. "We're headed straight to the hospital. Once we get far enough away, I don't believe that those things will pursue us any farther. Not without Slappy."

The air in the car seemed to grow heavy with the mention of Slappy's name. They all felt guilty for their decision, but none of them wanted to discuss it either.

Dennis drove towards the highway. He was somewhat relieved that there wasn't any sign of the puppets now. In fact, there were no signs of _anyone_.

"Why are everyone's front doors open..?" Brittany asked quietly as she watched the homes go by.

"Maybe they all left." Margo suggested. "They probably saw what was going on at Molly's home and evacuated."

"Yeah..."Brit agreed quietly. She became more visibly tense the closer they came to her house, until she held her breath as they turned the corner.

Molly held her hand as they passed her house."It's okay, Brit."she cooed sympathetically.

Brittany sat very still as they drove away. She felt a hard lump grow in her throat that made her voice crack when she spoke. "My door was open too."

"They're okay, Brittany. Don't worry." Molly said encouragingly.

Brittany looked at Molly and was on the verge of crying. "You really think so..?"

Molly didn't think so.  
She certainly hoped, but she knew what the more likely scenario was.  
Molly teared up a little, but smiled and nodded anyway.

Margo hugged Brittany and Mr. Molloy patted her on the shoulder.

The rest of the car ride went silently. None uttered a word as they drove, utterly alone on an interstate that was usually packed at this time of day. There were many abandoned vehicles in the medians and emergency lanes, but no people were anywhere to be seen.

They finally saw flashing lights up ahead. Dennis accelerated, but when they approached it became obvious that the ambulance and police car were abandoned.

Lizzy placed her hand on Dennis shoulder. "Dennis, wait. Let me out."

Dennis glanced at her to make sure she was serious, then slowed down. He pulled up beside the ambulance and put the car in park. "What are you going to do?"

"The police radio could still be working in the cop car. Maybe we can figure out something." she explained then climbed out of the car. "I'll be right back."

"Dennis, could you try the car radio?"Mr. Molloy asked.

Reluctantly he turned the radio on, pessimistic that any good news was to be heard.

Everyone in the car nearly had heart attacks when the speakers suddenly started blaring _"How Am I Supposed To Live Without You"_ by Michael Bolton at full blast. Dennis clamored madly to turn down the volume. He quickly ejected his CD then stashed it away in his center console. He felt eyes on him and looked up to see all of them staring intently at him. "What? I like Michael Bolton. There's no shame in that."he said unconvincingly.

"I'd be more embarrassed that you're still using CD's..."Brittany quipped.

Dennis looked away bashfully. "Yeah..I guess.."he muttered before turning his stereo to the radio setting.

Dead air.

Dennis began scanning the channels. He watched the illuminated numbers stop, as if the radio were trying to cling to some signal, then keep rolling through the frequencies.  
As the dial went through the full frequencies a third time, the atmosphere in the car was back to being painfully tense.

Brittany sniffled as the dial rolled again. "What happened? Where is everybody? I mean..there should be some music or something." She wiped her eyes with her wrist then said what was on every one else mind. "Are we alone?"

"No." Molly snapped stiffly. "We're together. We're fine."

Lizzy came back to the car and tapped on Dennis' window.

He rolled it down and looked at her with concern. "What is it?"

"I want you to come look at something."she stated then stepped away from the door.

"What about us? What is it?"Margo asked in her soft voice.

Lizzy shrugged,"It's probably nothing. I just need Dennis opinion, that's all."

Dennis exited the car and joined Lizzy. He followed her to the police car. "Probably nothing?"

"Yeah..."she said at first but then, once they were out of an ear shot she cleared her throat. "Actually, no. It's definitely something."

Dennis gazed up at her. "Why do you need me?"

Lizzy opened the door to the police car and motioned for him to get in. "Look in the back."

He felt a trill of anxiousness in his belly but did as asked. "Is somebody hurt?" He looked in the back and through the high density plastic with three bullet holes in it, there was a living puppet trapped inside. It lay face down, slumped over lifelessly across the seat in the back. "It looks dead."he commented after studying it for a few moments.

"You sure?" she asked.

Dennis watched it a little longer and got a gut feeling. "I'm certain. There's nothing in that one anymore."he said decisively.

"Okay." Lizzy pressed a button on the drivers door that unlocked the back doors.

"What are you doing?"Dennis asked in a hushed voice.

"I need to get a better look." She replied then opened the backdoor. "Wanna help me drag him out?"

Dennis moved to exit the car and his knee bumped a sturdy clipboard.

Lizzy gripped the puppet under his arms and drug him out with only a few pulls. "That was easy." she commented then flipped him over onto his back. "AH!?"Lizzy jumped back.

Dennis tumbled out of the car. "What!? What is it!?"

"It's eyes.."she said pointing at the puppet's face.

Dennis' hands came up to his eyes like a reflex. "They're.._shattered_." Dennis cringed and had to turn away. He closed his eyes and covered them with his hands. "I can't look at that."

"Really?" Lizzy knelt down beside the now _not_ living puppet. It looked pretty bad, but she could stomach it. "I figured that you've seen a lot of awful stuff working at a hospital."

"This is different...and I'm just training to be a nurse. It isn't my job, yet."

"Sorry, my mistake." Lizzy touched what was left of the crushed left eye and it crumbled. "Do you think it bothers you because he's a puppet too?"

"Probably."he sighed and removed his hands. At his side he saw the clipboard he was holding before he toppled out of the car. "But I don't think I was ever a human like him."he said and kicked the police clip board over to Lizzy.

It skidded to a stop at her feet and she picked it up, then stood. It had a license and some other information on a form on it. She inspected the license. "Looks like this was him before.._that_..happened to him."

"Shame." Dennis held his hand up like a blinder to keep from looking at the puppet's face and walked over to her. "Ready to go?"

"I think this is how you stop them."she said disregarding his question. Her eyes transfixed on the unfortunate victim. "They say the the eyes are the window to the soul." She looked at Dennis. He looked very uncomfortable being so close. She decided to wrap things up, but she couldn't leave that guy that way. "Hey, can I have your tie?"

"What..? I guess." He removed his dark blue tie from his button up shirt and handed it over to her. "It's really small. Sorry."

Lizzy grinned at him. "Size doesn't matter all that much, Dennis."

Dennis grumbled to himself. "Says the girl who can turn on a ceiling fan without a step stool.."

"Believe me, I have my own shortcomings."she said as she folded the tie. She crouched down and laid it over the deceased's eyes, then placed the police clip board on his chest. "I'm sorry this happened to you."

They gave him a moment of silence before returning to the car.

"Welcome back you two. Any news?" Mr. Molloy asked as they both got back into the car.

"There was nothing but empty air on the police radio. I also haven't had internet or phone service since yesterday."Lizzy said as she set her bag in the floorboard.

"It's the same in here on my stereo."Dennis said then started the car.

Lizzy turned and addressed everyone in the back. "We need to go back to the house."

Margo became very crestfallen. "You don't think we should keep going? Maybe we just haven't gone far enough?"

Lizzy shook her head. "Margo, I don't think it's going to get any better the further we go out. We'll be safe at the Molloy's and I think I have an idea."

"An idea for what?"Dennis asked as he turned the car around.

Lizzy took a note book and an old spell book out of her bag. "How to get some help."


	44. Chapter 44

"You shouldn't be here."Kris hissed under her breath.

Jackson held tightly to the edge of the door so Kris couldn't shut it on him. "But I need you to keep Medley."

Kris anxiously glared at his offending hand as she tugged at the door again. "He'd kill her if I brought her in here."

"Can you come to my room?"he softly begged.

Kris huffed impatiently. "You know I can't."

"I won't be there. He can't object if I'm gone."Jackson desperately reasoned.

"Jackson.."she shook her head and loosed her grip on the door.

He sighed tiredly. "Kris, please.."

"I'll watch her."

Jackson and Kris both nearly jumped out of their skins. Rachel stood just behind her brother and walked closer to the door. Her red hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail and she wore one of her more demure dresses than usual. She averted her eyes from them meekly and tighten her hair in it's tie. "I can keep it until Unc-"Rachel paused then corrected herself,"..until _Francesco_.. leaves, then Kris can come down and help."

Jackson was stunned. Rachel _never_ offered to help. More shocking to him was that she seemed truly sincere. "Rachel..I'm not sure.."

Rachel gripped the aged ivory colored skirt and pulled on it in frustration. It took a lot of self restraint to not throw a tantrum at that very moment. "I'm not useless. I can do it. I'm not a baby anymore."

Kris could see a wash of horror blanch Jackson's face at the possible implication in Rachel's reply. She reached out and touched his arm. He looked at her with baleful eyes that asked an unspoken question. "She's okay."she said to him reassuringly. The thing about about being fractured is that it makes it easier to recognize brokenness in others. Rachel appeared to her to only be quite shaken my her brother's near death experience.

Jackson quickly righted himself and cleared his throat and blinked away the mist in his eyes.

"She can watch her until I can excuse myself." Kris glanced back over her shoulder. "He's setting up a game for that other girl right now. I have to get back to him before he comes looking."

She looked to Rachel. The girl could have exposed her the night before, but had covered for her instead. Neither had anything to say to one another when they returned to Jackson's room. They had both seen the grim condition Jack was in. She had wondered if she should offer Rachel some words of comfort, but decided it was pointless. It surprised her how her heart lightened when Jackson stepped back into his room hours later. Rachel rushed to hug him and it was the most affection she had ever seen Rachel show her brother. She had wanted to question him, but Wood had stepped in right behind Jackson to collect her.  
The big brown eyes that gazed up at her now had a light of awareness that wasn't there the night before. "You can do it. Come get me if there's anything you can't handle."Kris instructed her and Rachel gave her an understanding nod. "Alright." Kris confirmed then swiftly closed the doors before Jackson could protest.

* * *

"So, we're in Werewolf Village, huh?" Amy asked as she strolled around looking in the grimy antique windows of the various establishments. "There's kinda a lack of werewolves around here..."she said with disappointment.

_"That's because they've all either fled or been turned into living puppets."_

"Oh yeah..I guess that makes sense."

_"You're definitely the thickest slave I've ever had in more than one way."_

Amy 'harumphed' and tapped on a snowy display screed deep set in an out of place looking information kiosk. "Shut up. I'm the best one you've ever- WAIT. What do you mean by ever had!? There's others!?"

He laughed in his impish way. _"You really think you were my only one? How do you think I knew about the Molloy's? And what about Lizzy? Don't you pay attention at all?"_

"Y-you-!? Are you kidding me!?" Amy balked. "You dirty little tom cat! I thought you just- I mean.._I thought_-" Amy scrunched up her nose and puffed out her cheeks, screaming muffled in her throat. "Oh forget it! If I didn't need you, I'd throw you down a well!"

_"The feeling is mutual."_ The light he emitted quickly diminished until he was almost extinguished and he dropped his voice. "_Stop, slave. He's here._"

"Frank is here?" she echoed him. It was surprising how cold her chest felt without his light and it heightened her guard. "Where?"

"Right here."Francesco whispered in her ears, directly behind her.

Amy dashed away then spun around on her heel. "UGH! CREEPER!"she yelled at him and wiped her neck with both hands in disgust.

Francesco laughed and slipped his hands into his black slacks pockets. "It was too easy to sneak up on you. You aren't going to last long that way."

Amy shifted her weight on and tilted her hip to the left. "So what'da'ya want? Are we going to play this game or not?"

Frank smiled showing his white teeth. "I like eagerness. Let's see if you can keep it up after our first game." He took a large steak out of his pocket and tossed it to Amy. "Catch!"

Amy's eyes widened and she had to take a step forward to catch the thick red cold cut. From the feel and what she recognized as marble on the meat it had to be a very expensive cut. She looked at him quizzically. "Ummm...I already ate, thanks."

"It isn't for you, silly!" Frank clapped his hands and the cobblestone street below Amy began to quiver and quake. Red beams of light emitted from the cracks that formed between the stones as they fells away.

_"Run!"_the eye commanded her.

Amy snapped out of her wonder then dashed to the nearest sidewalk. When she looked back the cobble stones had fallen into a red mist filled abyss, stopping just at Frank's feet. From it rose a large, mangled, rust covered iron cage. Inside, something struggled furiously. It jerked and thrashed against it's cage. Huge and feral, it hunched over onto itself almost suffocated by the weakening confines.

Amy backed away further on the sidewalk.

He got a kick out of he unsettled expression the girl wore. "You noticed that we are in Werewolf Village? I thought it would be fitting if our first game would be a little round of '_tag_'."he said as walked around to the front of the cage. It was twice his height and width and he approached the worn down padlock holding the door closed.

Amy put a hand to her chest and spoke in a hushed voice. "Hey, what do I do now, eyeball?"

He kept his light low as he answered her curtly. "_Ask the rules of the game._"

Amy nodded then widened her stance, faking confidence. "S-so what are the rules!?"she shouted.

"They're simple! Don't get eaten!" he said as he took a skeleton key from his left pocket.

Amy's heart began to pound as her slipped the key in the lock. "Is-is there a safe point!?"

"Nope!"he chirped and unlocked the cage.

"How am I supposed to win!?"she yelped, feeling there should be a little more explanation before having a blood thirsty animal loosed on her.

"Don't get eaten!" He giggled to himself, thoroughly enjoying her panic. He had to finagle the lock out of it's loop before tossing is to the ground. "You'll have sixty minutes until the next game starts after I open this door. So, try do you best for me!" He jumped back away from the door.

The cage burst open with great force and the beast spilled out. It lay on the ground in a mighty heap, then took a massive intake of air as if it were so compressed in the cage that it was unable to breathe properly.

Amy walked backwards, transfixed on the behemoth as it recovered, she whispered harshly to her chest. "How am I supposed to do this, Slappy? Are there any loopholes or tricks for out running a werewolf?"

He looked up at her and whispered just as roughly back to her. "_Unless you have any silver on you, then no-_"

Claws scraped slowly across aged and worn stones. He rose like a mountain breathing deep and hollow. Legs that had been unused for too long shook as they remembered their strength. He twisted his body, relieving the pressure built up in his bones with loud cracking until he ached his back. He rose onto his hind legs flexing his back out of it's hunch and let out a long repressed howl that shook the buildings down to their foundations.

For a moment all fear in Amy turned to awe.

When he breathed it was like clouds issuing from his maul. His eyes were the color of a harvest moon and shone like it at it's apex. His dank and matted coat shrouded what was certainly raw lean muscle and sinew. She watched doe eyed as he shook out his mane that grew thick around his throat, then stared straight at her.

* * *

**Guest 2 - OxO Holy crap! Dude! So much thank! I'm so sorry this was so late getting out, but school started again. I don't go to school, I just do one on one teaching and this year I'm a volunteer soccer coach too. TwT;;; **

**Daliah - Sorry! I hate disappointing people! TmT;; I'll try to write the next chapter sooner. **

**Thank you again to everyone who reads! **


	45. Chapter 45

"That was so fucking metal.."Amy breathed.

"_You should be running..._" Slappy's eye whispered up to her sharply.

"Nah..."she responded sounding almost completely detached.

The werewolf broke eye contact with her and staggered over to a nearby well. He braced himself on either side of it and drank in great wet gulps.

"This isn't the way I expected this to go."Frank said as he glared between Amy and the werewolf in disappointment.

Amy's mouth hung open. "His teeth are friggin' _huge._.."

Slappy's eye was practically vibrating within his globe as he scream-whispered at Amy,"_Now is the time to be running, slave! Hurry, before it recovers!_"

Amy absently understood what Slappy was saying and took a step back but stopped and looked at the steak in her other hand.

"_Slave, let's go!_"

Amy looked back at the thirsty werewolf then began walking forward.

He swirled around furiously,"_Are you out of your-!? What are you-!? Are you fucking kidding me!?"_he raged in disjointed sentences, because he couldn't settle on just one reaction to how stupid what she was doing was.

Amy ignored her angry little friend buried between her tits. She cautiously approached the wolf until she was so close to the beast that she could feel the heat coming from his body and hear the water slosh in his belly in his eagerness to parch his thirst.

She had a strong desire to pet him, but resisted and inched closer to his head.

Slappy could barely hold himself back from loosing his temper,"_Goddammit, you moronic slave! He's going to be very upset when you get torn apart and I'm going to have to deal with that! I put my trust in a slave and this is what I get, I should have-murpf!_"

Amy crossed and arm across her torso and squeezed her breasts together enough to completely envelop Slappy's eye and his bitching. With the new quiet, she slipped around the wolf to the opposite side of the well. She took a moment to inspect him. He was covered in scars and scabs and had half of his right ear missing. He was definitely a fighter.

Amy set the steak on the stone rim of the well.

The werewolf's eyes snapped open. It looked from her to the steak then back to her.

A chill ran up her spine and she swallowed hard. "T-that asshole over there gave it to me..s-so I don't know if it's poisoned or not..but you're welcome to it." Amy stammered awkwardly then took a cautious step back.

The wolf exhaled sharply through his snout sending a spray of water from the well onto Amy.

Amy grimaced at the abrupt shower. Water dripped down her face and she decided against trying to shake any off. Those orange eyes were practically on fire with the intensity of the werewolf's focus on her. She couldn't even gasp before the wolf lunged at her. Amy was shocked at the speed the werewolf was able to take the meat only inches in front of her. His fangs sank through it as though it were soft butter and the bone a spaghetti stick. The meat was gone in an instant.

She felt her blood pressure drop as she realized that the steak could just as easily been her. Her reaction time was nowhere near his. The only way she was going to have a chance in hell of winning was if she had a head start to compensate with.

Slappy was right, she should have been running.

His great chest rumbled with an intimidating, hungry growl. The wolf rose up on it's hind legs like a man and took a step closer to Amy.

Amy shivered and her heart rate sped up. Her mind began to cloud with panic, then a calm voice centered her. "_Don't run. Don't turn your back to him. Just walk backwards slowly, slave._"

She instantly came back to herself and backed away from the well, her eyes locked on the wolf on the other side.

"You both realize that your time is running out, right?" Francesco chimed in. He looked at a nonexistent watch on his wrist. He strode over to the well, not affected by the imposing wolf or heavy moment, and lightly kicked the outer wall. The surface changed into a crystal clear image of four emaciated people chained to the wall of what had to be a dark, cold, dungeon. Their shackles glinted with the shine of polished silver. "Your friends aren't going to save themselves and quite frankly," he kicked the wall lightly again and the image of Slappy laying on a broad altar, encircled by white flame candles took it's place," this guy doesn't have much longer before he's exorcised either."

Amy forsook her gained short distance from the well and quickly came back to it's edge. "Stop it!"she cried. "What are you doing!? You can't do that to him!"

Slappy on the altar's looked to be trying to move, but could only manage to feebly turn his head. He seemed to look at them, his blue eye dulled, loosing it's usual gleam.

"You have to give me a chance to win before you can do anything to him!"she yelled at Francesco.

He gave her a condescending look. "What gave you that idea? How stupid..of course I'm not going to put off my agenda just for a game."

Amy's chest burned hot and her throat contracted as a lump grew. It was obvious that the Slappy she saw was slowly dying. "You are a monster."

"I'm not a monster, I'm a god." He stuck his finger in the water and it froze solid, obscuring the image.

* * *

"Where am I going to get bone chalk?" Lizzy laid out another of six yellowed squares of parchment down on the floor in front of her. She scrutinized the images on each, looking for the correct pattern needed.

"I think there's a small bag in one of the showcases in the corner." Mr. Molloy said from a pallet on the floor as Dennis cleaned the wound on his neck.

Molly stood up from her father's side. "I know where it is."she said then crossed to the darker side of the room.

"Thanks." Lizzy squinted at the last two pages then picked up a book from a stack beside her. "I think I've got it, guys."

Molly returned with the bag of bone dust. "That's great, Lizzy. What do we do now?"

Lizzy collected the pages in order then started choosing books she wanted to keep. "Luckily, your dad has all the components needed for this spell, so that makes things much easier." She slipped five small old books in her satchel. "Alright, let's pack up anything from in here that can be of use to us. Slappy came here for a reason. There's gotta be some legitimately enchanted things in here we can use."

"Oh hey! Molly, we could go get the mind stealer!" Brittany quickly finished eating her pudding cup then tossed it in the trash bin. "It worked, even if temporarily, on Slappy. I bet it'd work on those other puppets for sure!"

Molly made a face then rubbed her arm. "It's really dangerous, Brit. I don't know if it's going to be worth the trouble."

Brittany frowned,"Look, I feel really useless. I mean, everyone else is contributing to our situation somehow, except for me." She could tell that she wasn't wrong by the way no one responded. "Let me do this."

Molly and Lizzy looked at each other skeptically. "It's out in the graveyard.I don't think we should leave the wards for anything right now."Lizzy reasoned.

"I'll go with her."Dennis said as he gently smoothed an adhesive bandage over Mr. Molloy's neck.

Brittany smiled at him gratefully. "Thanks, Den!"

He stood up and took off his latex gloves. "Not a problem, but we have to go before the sun begins to set."

"Okay. I guess we'll get everything together while you're gone." Lizzy said with a sigh. "You guys should get your stuff and set it by the laundry room door before you leave though."

"Why the laundry room?" Dennis asked.

Lizzy didn't look up from the book she was skimming through. "I need to be in a very dark place to cast the spell and... I need demon's blood."

Brittany frowned. She wasn't looking forward to having to smell Ray's corpse again. She looked to Dennis and got a more melancholy feeling from how he held himself. She wondered if maybe he though Ray's death was his fault? She walked over to him. She leaned over and patter him on the back. "Hey, ready to go partner?"

He nodded enthusiastically and they left together.

* * *

"Margo?"Lizzy walked into the room they had been sharing. It was filled with a yellowish-brown, low light from the closed off white curtains that hung in the window. Margo had said she was tired when they returned and had laid down for a nap. "Are you up?"

Margo lay on her side on the large king sized bed on top of the plush dark burgundy comforter. Her back was to the door and she breathed lightly.

Lizzy smiled then crawled onto the bed and laid down behind her. She draped her arm around Margo, hugging her close and smelling the perfume of her soft blonde hair. "Hey, wake up sleepy head."she cooed.

Margo sniffled and gave a shuddering sigh in her hold.

Lizzy sat up in alarm. "Margo, you okay?"

Margo turned over and looked at Lizzy. Her face was blotchy with pink and her eyes and nose were red from crying. She hadn't slept at all. She had laid in bed and cried off and on for the last three hours. "I'm not okay."

Lizzy sat up quickly and caressed the side of Margo's hot cheek. "What's wrong?"

Margo sat up,"Everything! Nothing is okay! I'm so scared, Lizzy...I just want to go home."she sobbed.

Lizzy felt terrible. She knew this was what was most likely to happen when Margo had first said she was going to come with her. She never wanted to see her hurt and upset like this. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."she apologized earnestly.

Margo shook her head. "No...I wanted to come. You tried to stop me."

She rubbed Margo's back, trying to comfort her. "I promise that if this works, that _I will get you home_."

Margo began to bawl into her hands. She leaned on Lizzy heavily,"Lizzy, I don't have a home to go home to!"

"What..?"Lizzy balked.

"The last e-mail I g-got was from my dad!"she choked out between sobs. She sat up straight and looked at her girlfriend. "_He's going to prison_."

Lizzy covered her mouth. "Oh god..I'm so sorry, Margo."

"I can't go home because the police are looking for me too."Margo said as tears kept rolling down her cheeks. "I'm homeless again, Lizzy. I'm alone. I don't have anyone."

"You have me."she reiterated with a squeeze of her hand.

Margo looked away and pulled her hand from Lizzy's gently. "It isn't the same, Lizzy..no offense."

She looked away, feeling off-put. "It's okay."she said and picked at the chipped black varnish on her her own nails. "You know I'll help you, no matter what, right?"she asked feeling she needed to redeem herself.

"Yeah.."she said, lacking any confidence in her tone.

Lizzy furrowed her brow with concern,"I mean it. Even if you don't want to be..you know.._together_ anymore."

Margo didn't respond. She had to admit that in the face of the current circumstances, the romanticism she felt for Lizzy before was practically gone. The small old fashioned alarm clock ticked away as they sat in silence.

Lizzy felt awkward in a way she never had with Margo before. She didn't know if she could take Margo's silence as an affirmation of the ending of their short relationship or not. "We are going to try a spell in the wine cellar. If it works, we should be able to get out of here."she said then slipped off of the bed and started collecting a few personal items she wanted to take with her. "Get what you need and meet us down the hall, okay?"

Margo stared at the window as Lizzy went to leave. "I'm sorry, Lizzy."she said softly.

Lizzy stopped in the doorway. "Me too."


	46. Chapter 46

_"Go to the left!" _he ordered._  
_

Amy dove down the narrow alley and scrambled as fast as she could. Her legs burned, her throat was tight, her palms and knees were bloodied from colliding with the ground too many times in the past hour, but with all her adrenaline she felt like she was flying.

The werewolf's howl sounded more like a scream of frustration as the two stone buildings didn't yield to his bulk, preventing him yet again from catching his prey.

Amy couldn't help but let a tiny laugh escape her.

Slappy didn't miss it either. _"Don't laugh. This isn't funny."_

The alley was narrow, long and suddenly went into a decline.

_"Wait. Stop running."_

Amy gladly slowed then flopped against the cold stone wall, panting.

_"He can't get to us for now. Rest while I come up with a better plan."_

Amy put her back to the wall and slid down. Her bum hit the cooling stone ground and sighed in relief. Tilting her head back, she relaxed. "Whatever you say, , Slappy.."she panted.

_"If only you actually meant that, this would be a hell of a lot easier."_he grumbled then looked at their surroundings. _"Slave. Take me from your sweaty bosom. I need to have a better look around."_

"Huh..? What? You don't like my 'mountains majesty'?"she asked jokingly and removed him from her chest. She held him in her palm and her stared back at her quietly.

_"They're barely satisfactory mole hills."_he said after a pause._  
_

Amy didn't know why she laughed. Perhaps she was becoming endeared by his frequent jabs or maybe it was because she found his current form cute?

_"You look different, slave."_he stated. He had passively noticed a difference that afternoon, but now he was getting a good look. Her face seemed a little thinner, making her high cheek bones visible to him for the first time. Her lips seemed fuller and he suspected that she had become a bit taller as well. _"The time transfer aged you. You look slightly more like a woman. It must be why you have enough breast to safely house me now."_

Amy half sneered. "Was that supposed to be a compliment?"

He chuckled quietly._ "Not really, but in your case, you should take what you can get."_

Amy raised a brow at him. "I have an idea. Why don't we play fetch the next time wolfy comes to play?" she teased, tossing him in the air and catching him a few times.

_"Stop that you fool!" _he scolded.

Amy laughed then held him safe in her palm. "So, I really look different, huh?"

Slappy disregarded her question._ "Be quiet and hold me up a little higher."_

Amy rolled her eyes. She sighed and groaned at the same time as she rose back to her feet. "I gotta say that I can't believe we aren't dog food."

_"See how well things turn out when you actually listen to me?" _he said matter-of-factly._  
_

Amy smirked at him and carefully walked down the darkening alley. "Shut up, Slappy."

_"We can win this, I have that much faith in myself. If we could just work together instead of being so stubborn all the time, there is still time to fix everything."_

Amy smiled broadly. "Sooo, are you proposing that we should act decent towards each other, kinda like _partners_?"

_"What!? No-!"_ He could feel himself glowing warmer. _"I-only want you to act like a good slave for once, slave.."_

Suddenly, a shower of rotted wooden roof tiles rained down from them from thin slit of open space above them. Amy quickly hunched over, protecting Slappy's eye against her chest. "Oooff! Ouch! Shit!"she cursed as each tile hit her. She jumped from side to side trying to avoid the falling debris, but the alley was too narrow.

"_Move it, Slave! Before he buries us!_"

Amy burst into a sprint to escape the barrage, but from the cacophony echoing further above them and the cascade of tiles following them, it was obvious that the werewolf was flushing them out. "I don't guess you came up with any ideas, did you Slappy!? OUCH!"

_"We're going to have to kill him."_he said darkly._  
_

Amy protected her head with one arm, earning herself more bruises. "UM. OKAY. SOUNDS EASY."she stated loudly, her words dripping in sarcasm.

He glared up at her through her fingers that were wrapped securely around him._ "Look, I'm stuck in an eyeball. There's only so much I can do."_

The decline suddenly came to what looked like a dead end. She slammed into the wall and had the breath nearly knocked out of her. She lifted Slappy up to her face,"What if I get you out of there!? Can't I just break the eye?"

_"NO!" _he shrieked loudly, flaring brightly in alarm. _"If this eye breaks, I'll cease to exist!_ " His gaze shot from left to right. The 'dead end' was actually a 'T' in the back alleys. To the left they would take them to the bat barns and eventually Vampire Village, or the right would take them to HorrorLand Plaza and the Doom Slide.

"Slappy,where should we go!?"Amy called to him in panic. The scratching and snarling overhead was coming closer and closer.

_"Go to the left!"_ he shouted decisively just before a great crumbling mass off stone and shingles came raining down along with the werewolf himself into the cramped alley. Amy and Slappy screamed in surprised. Amy hunched over Slappy again and from his protected position close to her, he could hear every hit she took for him resonate through her body. For a moment he worried how much she could actually take.

"GAH!" A huge paw slammed her into the wall, stunning her and making her drop to the ground. For a moment, she lost her hold on Slappy's eye and he fell from her hand. He rolled only a foot away before she realized what happened. "Slappy!"she gasped and dragged herself after him.

_"Catch me! Catch me! Catch me!"_he yelled in a blind panic as he rolled further away. His pupil went to a pin prick as he watched helplessly while Amy was scooped up by the werewolf and thrown against the wall again.

Amy hit the ground again, bruising her other cheek painfully and had the wind fully knocked out of her this time. She couldn't breathe to scream when the werewolf took her in his mouth.

_"NOOO!__ AMY!"_ he screamed. The last Slappy saw before rolling down the declined alley toward the Bat Barns was Amy being slung around like a rag doll in the werewolf's maul.


	47. Chapter 47

**Adult situations warning for second half of this chapter.**

* * *

"Hurry up, Brittany. It's getting late." Dennis held a short shovel in his arms and a white linen bag swayed from his straight jeans waist band as they jogged down the sidewalk towards a graveyard.

Brittany kicked at a large leaf that had become trapped in her shoelaces. Her warm deep purple and black plaid jacket was half unzipped revealing the faded green tee she wore beneath. She smiled down at the living dummy beside her as they hurried along. "Thank you for coming with me, Dennis."

Dennis looked up at her and shrugged. "I wouldn't have let you go alone."

The sun was setting and the temperature was dropping even faster. "You're a nice guy, Denny."

"Thanks...I guess so."he replied dismissively.

They reached and old but well kept, fenced in graveyard. Brittany kicked the rusty wrought iron gate open rather than fiddle with the tetanus lace clasp. "Alright! Let's get to work!"she declared and ran through down a row of various ornate large headstones over to where she buried the creepy shrunken head years ago. "It should be here." Brittany said then began pushing leaves and sticks from a spot with no obvious differences from the rest of the old grave yard.

"Are you sure?"Dennis asked as he came up beside her.

"Yeah, totes." She got on her hands and knees and felt the ground. "Dig right here!" she exclaimed as she drew an 'X'.

"Okay, move back." Dennis said then drove the shovel into the soft black earth, but...it didn't go in very far. Dennis paused and assessed his embarrassing situation. He was too small and light to get enough leverage. "Maybe you should do this."he stated and handed over the shovel.

"It's okay Denny."she said feeling sympathy for him. She pulled back and drove the spade in the ground and started removing it in great heaps. "It's still surprising how fast I kinda forgot that you're a ventriloquist dummy."she commented idly.

"I wish I could forget."he said bitterly.

"You think it'd make you happy?" she asked.

Dennis shrugged. "They say ignorance is bliss."

Brittany grunted as the dirt became more compact as she dug deeper. "Ignorance means the same thing as stupid right?"she asked.

Dennis gave her a flat look, though she didn't notice. "Yeah. They're synonymous."

Brittany nodded her head and shoveled out another heap. "Okay."

Dennis waited for her to continue, but Brittany just kept digging. "So, is that it? You aren't going to lecture me about how stupid it is to want to be stupid?"

She stopped and gave him and odd look. "What? No. Huh?"

Dennis shook his head and wave his hand dismissively. "Never..never mind."

Brittany shrugged and continued digging until she head a cracking sound. "OH! This is it!"

Dennis took the white linen sack from his pants' belt loop. "Okay, let me pick it up."he insisted and knelt down beside the hole. He pushed dirt and broken glass away with his hands until he touched the warped wooden bottom of a case. He carefully eased it from the ground.

"Be careful not to touch the head." she reminded him.

"I won't." Dirt fell in clumps from the smashed case. Dennis gave it a gentle shake and the rest fell out, but the mindstealer was missing from it's pedestal. "It's gone."

"What! No way!" Brittany exclaimed and dropped to her knees by the hole and started poking around in the dirt with the handle of the shovel. "Maybe it's in one of these clumps!"

Dennis tossed the case aside and watched as she moved the clods around.

"Look!"she yelped happily as white strands of hair came in view. She jostled the dirt ball it was coming from. The dirt fell away to reveal a disfigured, warped version of the cursed item. The skin no longer taunt, but now sagging from the underlying tiny brittle skull. "UGH! Nasty!"

"It's not supposed to look like that, I gather?" Dennis asked.

"No...ew...is it moving..?"she asked leaning toward it slightly. The head began to squirm and the mouth fell open, brown foul smelling mud issuing forth with hundreds of tiny wriggling worms in it. Brittany jump back. "Oh god! SICK!"  
The eyes opened and long green beetles with red bellies slithered out of them. They made a sound like pigs screaming when they spread their black wings and flew away. After the last one screamed away, the mind stealer itself dissolved into a wet black rot.

Dennis looked to Brittany. Her face was frozen in a wide eyed revolted expression that would be funny if it weren't such an accurate response to the situation. "I don't think it's usable anymore, Brit."

Brittany had a full body shudder. "EWWWWW! NO! NOPE! UGH!"she yelled and started shoveling dirt back into the hole. "So gross! So gross! So gross!"

Dennis stood back while she buried the refuse in the hole, then finally kicked leaves back over the turned earth. "Better now?"

Brittany gave him a tiny wave and nodded breathlessly. "That was..._eww_."

He waited a minute to let her catch her breath then looked to the deepening purple sky. "Agreed, but lets get out of here fast. The sun is too low already."

"Yeah, okay." Brittany nodded again then followed him through the tall old gravestones.

Dennis suddenly stopped in his tracks and gasped lightly. "Oh no."

Brittany nearly tripped over him. "What?" She looked ahead at the entrance to see someone already standing there at the rusted gate. "Oh no. Mom.."

* * *

The denim of Amy's jeans offered no barrier on her hips and thighs as teeth were forced through the garment. The pain was shocking, and worse, the tearing as she was lifted into the air and slung around mercilessly. What was only a few seconds, lasted forever to her before she was dropped carelessly onto the hard ground. The hit somehow reversed the previous one and air flooded back into her stunned lungs. She gasped greedily, but the air was cutting cold in her chest. Hot blood seeped out and drenched her lower half, the pain of each gouge loud and burning to the bone. Amy lay helpless under the beast.

From the haze of pain a memory surfaced from long ago and far away.

For a moment she was seven and strapped into the seat beside her sister. They were about to go on her first roller coaster ride.

_"Are you ready,sis?"Sara asked her._

_"Y-yeah!"little Amy squeaked._

_Sara gave her a skeptical look. "It's going to go really fast. Are you sure you're going to be okay, Amy?"_

_Amy fidgeted. "H-how fast..?"_

_"Really fast, but we'll be safe. I won't let anything happen to you." Sara took hold of her hand._

_Amy could remember it's reassuring warmth even now._

_"If you get scared, scream your head off. It makes scary things less scary."_

"S-Sara..."she breathed at the end of a shaking breath. She had forgotten that at one point, her sister had been her friend.

Amy clawed at the ground gasping deeply, then screamed from the bottom of her lungs. She screamed for the pain, she screamed for the frustration, she screamed for the life she was terrified of loosing, but wouldn't let go of easily. Through gritted teeth and eyes blurred with tears, she drove herself to reach out and seized up a large roof tile.

Hot, rancid breath rolled over her back and she could hear the werewolf's jaw cracking as it opened wide. A rush of adrenaline flooded her system and she flipped around as lethal fangs and claws flew upon her. Amy snarled, throwing the tile with all the heat her pitching arm could launch it with, sending it straight into the beast's throat.

The werewolf recoiled inches from Amy, his eyes wide. He gagged and hacked, his fur scrunching up making him look like a porcupine.

Laying on the ground, Amy could see it's tongue working against her tile, trying desperately to dislodge it.

The wolf staggered back and held it's throat, the universal signal for choking.

With the wolf temporarily distracted, Amy pulled herself to her feet.  
"_F-FUUCK! AHHHH!_" she screamed in agony. She choked back a sob and leaned against the nearest wall for support. She looked at her legs. From her knees up to her hips on both sides of her legs were puncture holes the size of tent spikes. She brought her hand to her right hip and squeezed her eyes shut. The teeth had to have gone to the bone.

The wolf slammed himself against the narrow walls, causing the buildings to shudder and shake. He shook his head violently, heaving and hacking, doing anything to remove the tile. He kept slamming into the wall at the top of the 'T' causing the building to finally crumble.

"Shit!" she cursed and lurched on her unwilling legs. The only safe route was up the alley she and Slappy had been chased down. Luckily, she didn't have to make much distance before she heard the thunder of the collapse end and a miserable whine begin.

She turned and waited for the dust to clear. The wolf lay still covered under heavy stone. A grimace chiseled into her face at the appearance of a certain redhead sitting on top of the heap.

"I suppose this round goes to you after all." Francesco said feeling rather impressed.

Winning should have made her happy, but looking at the dying werewolf, it didn't. She couldn't stop from thinking about the people she saw in the well. "What's going to happen to his friends?"

He tilted his head and gave her an amused smile. "Oh, they'll rot. I'll have that part of the dungeon sealed off. If their lucky they'll suffocate.." he said then snorted with a scoff,"..but I doubt it."

Amy slammed her fist against the wall. "Why would you_ DO_ that!?"she hollered at him.

"Because, I want to see how long it takes for them to realize Grady over here isn't going to save them." he said and jumped down. The heels of his shiny black leather shoes clacked sharply against the street. When he looked at her, his usual air of flippancy abruptly halted and he looked into her fiery earthen eyes. "You don't understand how satisfying it is to see the very moment a spirit breaks."

The hair on the back of her neck stand on end and she felt like she was going to be sick. "What is your problem...? How the the hell did you become like this? Weren't you human once!?"she accused.

He quickly approached her, his heels sharply resounding through the alley with each step. It was no surprise when she tired to punch him. He easily deflected her sloppy attack and captured her wrists tightly in his hands. "You are surprisingly feisty, my dear!"he growled. "Come here!"he ordered. Viciously, he jerked her toward the pile of stone.

"NO!"Amy wailed, but her legs hurt too much to walk on, let alone fight. He forced her down and spoke in a language she didn't understand. Something cold slithered around her wrists and tightened as his hands released.

With her restrained, he decided to dirty his hands and unfastened her bloodied jeans. He smirked at the burst of ferocity she displayed while he worked them down. She nearly kneed him in the nose before he punched her wounds on her left thigh to still her.

Amy shrieked then sobbed. She closed her eyes as he forced her pants down to her ankles.

Francesco looked her over with his eyes and his hands. The skin of her calves was smooth and soft aside from random topography of old scars. She had sun olived skin and firm muscle beneath a layer of healthy softness, but she was filthy.

She smelled of sweat and struggle with the warm earthy spice of blood.  
This was not what he liked normally.  
He liked cold, clean things. Perfect and pristine. Fragile and easy to subdue.

"I thought I knew what I liked.."he breathed then leaned in closer between her legs "..but now I'm thinking that what I need is a dirty girl full of fire." He watched Amy's expression as he opened his mouth and pressed his tongue to the flesh on the inside of her left knee. She immediate seized up and fought him. He aggressively forced her legs apart, spreading her lewdly for him. He chuckled darkly. "Dark blue suits you, my dear." he said referring to the satin panties she wore. He placed his mouth back to her offended flesh on her knee. He licked and kissed down her thigh. The taste of her skin was like nothing he had sampled before. Her sweat and blood an intoxicating concoction of hormones that was as repulsing at it was delicious.

Amy's stomach turned with every baby soft kiss. He face was too soft for a man. "THAT'S GROSS! YOU'RE GROSS! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Amy shrieked and thrashed. She wished her skin would melt off like that guy's face in the Raiders of the Lost Ark. "What you need is a shrink and a kick in the head!"

He laughed and smoothed his hand over the inside of her thigh, peeking his thumb under the edge of her underwear.

"Get the hell off of me!"she roared but her voice was loosing it's dangerous edge. She was too close to fainting from her injuries alone.

"No."he purred salaciously and traced the dark blue hem up and looped his fingers in the fabric rim. Her weak attempt to push him away was, if anything, cute as he licked her exposed belly.  
His hand brushed over a rivulet of blood running down the back of her thigh making him suddenly remember why he pinned her in the first place. "But I suppose I can wait a little longer."

Francesco pulled away feeling just a little disappointed, but it would be a bit of a damper on his pleasure if she died of blood loss just when things got good. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a bundle of blue bandages wrapped in twine. "You're so lucky. I never do this for anybody myself." he commented as he applied the magic bandages to her legs. They they squeezed and sealed her wounds shut painfully. When he was done, he dismissed the tethers around Amy's wrists. He stashed the left over bandages back in his jacket, then produced a vial of red potion. He firmly squeezed either side of her jaw to force it open and poured the potion in her mouth. "Open wide and swallow."

Amy choked a little but gave little resistance.

He stopped at half the vial then plugged it with a cork. "I guess I should have warned you that this potion is fairly addictive, but it will have you feeling better in no time." he said with a devilish smirk, then stepped away from her.

She was a wreck. All sprawled out, her pants around her ankles, looking thoroughly dazed, and beaten. "I'll let you pull up your pants on your own. Try and clean yourself up. You're disgusting."

Amy weakly glared at him. She didn't give a shit what she looked like. Amy could feel the potion working, taking away all her pain, but still wanted to vomit it up. She shut her exhausted eyes and only focused on breathing.

"I'll give you half an hour to get to The Doom Slide. I already let you go over your allotted time with the first game, so don't be tardy to our next one." He looked at his filthy hands and jacket. "That should give me time to bathe and change my clothes, too." He turned and walked towards HorrorLand Plaza. "I'll see you soon, Amy!"

Amy waited until she couldn't hear his foot falls any longer then opened her eyes. The alley to the bat barns and Vampire Village was blocked, not that it would stop her from trying to climb it. She had to find Slappy, but not until after a short rest.

She rested her eyes and slowed her breathing. Then she noticed something.

Other breathing.

Her eyes shot open and she turned her head hard in the direction of the wheezing breaths.

The wolf stared back at her.


	48. Chapter 48

Molly pulled the brass chain on an old Tiffany style lamp in the corner of the finished attic. The warm amber light made it easier to read the white birch book she held. It wasn't all that easy to understand because she didn't know Latin, but she did have an understanding of Italian. Molly had never thought an extra curricular would actually pay off. She sighed and squinted at a word as if that would make it's meaning easier to comprehend. "I wish I had the internet. I'm having trouble remembering root words."

Not far away, Lizzy tucked a small blanket over a suitcase of items collected from around the attic. "You and me both."she said jovially. "I'm going to start having withdrawals soon."she joked then zipped the square of luggage up.

Mr. Molloy gave a warm deep laugh from his spot on a small couch. "You kids think you have it so good, but you can't believe everything you read on the internet." He rose and slipped a small metal box into his thick brown corduroy jacket pocket. "It's always best to go directly to the source and get the information yourself."

Molly looked up from her book. "Sometimes time is more valuable than having absolute accuracy on whether a dirty old mask is a haunted item or not.."she remarked passive aggressively.

Mr. Molloy seemed to shrink in posture. He touched the stitches at his throat then looked to his daughter apologetically. "That, I can't argue with."

Lizzy looked to Molly. "Just do your best with what you know, Mol. Slappy himself said you were a natural."

Mr. Molloy walked to Molly and gave her a hug. "That's as good an endorsement as you're going to get, sweetheart."

Molly peeked over her dad's elbow at Lizzy. "You'll still help me though, Liz?"

Lizzy smiled and nodded,"Yes. I'll lay down all the ground work. You'll just have to commence the spell."

Molly's eyes teared up for a moment. Her father released his hug and she looked back down at her book. "I'm pretty sure I know the spell now."

"I know you'll do great." Lizzy said and lifted the case upright. "These things should be safer in this instead of my pack."

Molly hummed in agreement, not looking up from her book.

Mr. Molloy patted Molly on the head then lumbered toward the back of the room.

Lizzy was glad that Molly and her father were working things out. They were both nice people, she had decided. She looked to the small window in the attic and began to worry. "It's almost nightfall outside." She turned to Margo, who had been curled up on the other side of the couch in a dark pink blanket. "Margo, could you go check if Brittany and Dennis are back yet?"

Margo's aqua eyes peered back at her from barley over her fluffy blanket, half lidded in general disinterest. "Yeah...sure." She stood up in her fleecy tan Uggs with dark wash jeans tucked in them. Her warm white sweater was covered by her enveloping blanket that lightly drug the floor as she walked out the door.

Molly glanced at Lizzy in concern. "Is she okay..?"

Lizzy shook her head then hugged her arms. "No. I think she's disassociating. This whole situation is so crazy."

Molly sighed then closed her book. "I think I know how she feels." She returned to the small couch her father and Margo had been sitting on and retrieved her ivory cable knit jacket.

Lizzy wished she could talk about what was going on with Margo with Molly. Maybe she would have some kind advice to give..? But she really felt that Margo wouldn't appreciate anyone else knowing her business. Lizzy said nothing and picked up her suitcase. "Guys, it's time to go to the wine cellar."

* * *

The werewolf's head and front paws poked out from under collapsed wall to Amy's right. She blinked slowly at the defeated beast staring back at her. "Hey there, you son of a bitch." She could have sworn the wolf was dead...Frank had probably thought he was too.

He whined hoarsely at her then shut his eyes in defeat.

Amy sighed. He couldn't help his situation here in Horrorland as much as she could hers. Amy suddenly had another stupid impulse...she really hated herself sometimes. "Hold on buddy.."she grunted. She rolled herself onto her belly then pushed herself back onto her feet.

"Well, holy fuck..."she said in surprise. She chuckled in amusement then jogged in place with her pants still around her ankles. Even though she knew she was still injured and should take it easy, it was great how it didn't hurt. "That was some good shit!"

She halted her dazed merriment and looked back at the wolf. "Okay, Grady was it?"she asked while she pulled her pants back up. He didn't answer her so she walked over to the werewolf's head peeking out of the rubble. Amy knocked a wobbly stone over just in front of him and plopped down on it. "Look,"she said gruffly," if you won't be a dick about it, I'll try to get that tile out of your throat."

Orange eyes shot open and stared at her in surprise and distrust. He paused, becoming very still as he internally weighed his options. He tilted his head with effort and his wheezing breaths sped up. He slowly opened his maw for her as wide as he could.

He grunted loudly when he felt a rock being jammed between his back teeth and grunted in disapproval.

Amy rolled her eyes. "I'm not that stupid to not take some precautions."she explained then leaned forward, extending her arm into his mouth. Careful to avoid his teeth, she sneered in disdain. His mouth was warm and wet and foul smelling. Amy began regretting her decision from the pure discomfort she was in feeling around in the slimy orafice. She decided to go as long as she could without breathing. Amy hurriedly reached in far, feeling around until she finally grabbed the rugged edge of the tile. "I got it...!" she exclaimed then tugged at it.

His throat immediately tightened.

Amy groaned. "Try to relax for like, a second and I can get it out...!"she grunted, shoulder deep in his throat.

He growled irritably from his stomach, then took in a short nasal breath. He did his best to calm himself, then exhaled.

The moment Amy felt his throat begin to go slack, she quickly flipped the tile on it's side and slipped it free.

The wolf coughed from the rawness left behind, but also felt instant relief. He happily took a few deep, uninhibited breaths to celebrate.

Amy smirked then tossed the slobber drenched tile aside and shook the drool from her arm. "Better?"she asked wryly.

He glanced back at her, then promptly chomped the stone she had wedged into the back of his jaw into pieces.

Amy's eyes widened.

The wolf began to move, finding the strength to struggle and drag himself out of the rubble.

"Whoa...hold on now.."she said hopping up and backing away fast.

He drove his claws deep into the mortared grooves of the street and used his renewed spirit to drag his body out of the rubble. It took him three good tries, but soon he was free.

Amy stared up at the panting, profoundly tired, but proud werewolf before her. "S-so..how about a little Aesop gratitude here and you just let me go do my thing and you do yours..?"she asked nervously.

He narrowed his eyes at her, scrutinizing her yet again.

"Come on, Grady.."she said in a pleading tone as she took a step back from him.

His eyes flew wide at the third mention of his name in the hour.

Amy gawked as the werewolf suddenly began to shrink and change. He fell to the ground, his great mane disappearing into a soft mangle of dirty blonde hair on his head. The rest of his thick mangled coat and muscular bestial form dissipated into the form of a pale nude young man.

Amy shook her head. "I've seen so many naked guys lately..."

He wasn't overly muscular like she had expected a werewolf in human form to be, but actually a bit doughy instead albeit covered in bruises and cuts. He groggily rose up and sat spread eagle on his knees. He held his head like it hurt and coughed a few times.  
Amy looked at his displayed endowment and she pursed out her bottom lip. "Dammit, Ray...you did give me unrealistic expectations.."she complained, "..or this guy is just really cold..."

"I-I'm c-cold!"he rasped at her and quickly closed his legs. He hugged his arms and began to shiver.

Amy approached him quickly. "Here, man."she said and took off her grey thermal shirt. Her black camisole offered a poor barrier to the cold evening air but it was still better than nothing.

He looked up at her. His eyes were light brown with flecks and glimmers of the wolf's orange eyes within them.

"Thank you."he said then took the clothing. He put it on though it was tight. He had hoped the shirt would reach low enough to cover his privates, but he couldn't get it to stretch down far enough. He coughed again then just cupped both hands over his junk and stood up. "Sorry for trying to kill you."he said in a gravelly voice, damaged from the tile.

Amy shrugged. "I'd of done the same thing if I were you."

Grady nodded at her awkwardly then shuffled unsteadily toward the inclined alley he had just chased her down.

"Where are you going?"she asked.

He staggered up the alley. "Clothes.."

Amy frowned miserably as he struggled up the narrow street. She tried to quiet the voice in the back of her head with reason. She had done enough for him and needed to find Slappy as soon as possible.

But..

"Hold on.."she moaned and jogged after him. She hooked an arm around his waist and had him put an arm around her shoulder for support. "Look, let's just make this quick. Werewolf Village isn't too far away if you let me help you."

"Why..?"he rasped.

Amy shouldered more weight and sped up their pace. "Because I'm a huge dummy."

* * *

Brittany's throat tightened and her eyes began to water. At the entrance to the old cemetery stood her mother. Or a facsimile of her. The woman swayed ever so slightly on her wooden legs making her blue night dress swish in the cold Autumn air.

"Mom...?" Brittany covered her mouth and felt her heart drop as her worst fear was realized. The eyes she that had lovingly watched over her all of her days, now were beholden her with a haunting emptiness. "No.._no_.._no_..!"she chanted, rejecting the reality before her. "Mom, no not you!" she cried.

Dennis took Brittany by the hand and lead her further away from the fence. "I'm so sorry Brittany." He looked around them and on the outskirts of the cemetery he could see more movement in the increasing shadows.

"_My mom..._"she whined as tears rolled down her cheeks. Dennis lead her a few feet back, closer to the midden of the graveyard and out of a lunging arm reach of any living puppets. There were a few approaching slowly from the street, though more had made it to the old iron fencing that surrounded the graves.

Dennis patted Brittany's hand. "I don't think they can come in here." he reassured her.

"We're trapped." Brittany dropped to her knees and hugged Dennis. "I'm sorry.."

Dennis pushed Brittany's copper locks from his face, then gingerly returned the hug. "It's okay. It's not your fault."

"I'm so stupid.."

"No, you aren't. It's going to be okay. We're on holy ground. They can't-" he paused when there was a sudden, tiny pop in his head. "Ahh~!" He shut his eyes and loosed his hold on her.

"Dennis? what's wrong?"

He clutched the sides of his head and a little felt dizzy. "It's my head."he murmured. His head ached him and a ringing started in his ears.

A dark imaged flashed before him behind his closed eyes. A silhouette of a man wearing a top hat stood before him on a dark foggy night.

**_"I want the newest coffin." he said._**

**_"But..that one is.." a voice echoed._**

**_"I know. I'd get it myself, but I can't step foot in there. Cemeteries are holy ground, you know."_**

**_"Oh..alright, sir..."_**

As quickly as the premonition and pain came it left leaving Dennis leaning on Brittany and completely baffled.

"Denny?" Brittany scooped him closer to her and shuffled them backwards against a particularly large headstone with it's inscription long worn away by the sands of time.

"I'm fine."he said and gave his head a soft shake. "I just.."he looked up at her and raised his eyebrows in quiet surprise," I remembered something."

Brittany gazed back at him with concern. "Was it bad?"

He shrugged. "I don't know."

The shuffling of feet through dead leaves brought their attention back to the problem at hand.

"Brittany, look at them. There's still enough light to keep them slow. I believe you can out run them." he said and stood up.

She saw the accumulating wooden people, but avoided their looking faces. "Ya' think?"she asked, feeling not so convinced.

Dennis took the shovel. "I can help slow them down. For some reason they ignored me before. When that man took Amy.."

Brittany smiled sympathetically,"Just try not to take out my mom's kneecaps if you can, okay?"

Dennis nodded then turned to the entrance. "I'll try."

* * *

"What do you want!?"Rachel shrieked at the howling baby horror on her brother's bed. She tried burping it and feeding it but that was sadly the extent of her knowledge about babies.

Medley rolled on the bed and wailed in discomfort.

"AHHH! You fat annoying little grub! I don't know what you want, so just shut up already!"she screamed at her and threw Medley's bottle to the floor. "I hate babies!" Rachel crossed her arms and turned her back to the infant. "I wish I hadn't agreed to this! Where the hell is Kris!?"

The doorknob turning made Rachel sigh in relief. "Oh my god! It took you long enough! I can't carry this big bugger ball!"she yelled at Kris before she even fully opened the door.

She walked in and the red-headed girl stared at her in bewilderment.

Rachel mouth hung open and she stared at Kris. She had cut her hair short and she was wearing a pair of skinny blue jeans with a black turtleneck sweater. "Kris...!?"

She smirked at the little girl. "No."

Rachel backed away from the woman. She looked like Kris, but her eyes weren't the same. Kris had cool blue eyes like water reflecting the sky, but this woman's were cold like ice. "Who are you!?"

She pushed the door wide open for the tall male horror behind her to enter the room. The girl in the frock wilted at the sight of him and dropped to the floor, covering her head with her hands as he passed her by.

He walked triumphantly to the bed and gathered the little horror in his arms. He held her to his chest as great clear purple tears rolled down his cheeks. "Aggie. I thought I lost you too.."he crooned to her, calming the baby instantly.

"Alright Ned, we have your daughter. We need to hurry and finish this."the short hair blonde said sharply.

He kissed the baby's head, then gave the woman a baleful look. "Have a heart, Lindy. Let me have this moment."

"Time isn't a luxury we have right now, Ned."she reiterated, obviously annoyed with him.

Rachel heard more feet stomp into the room. She peered up from the floor to see another, female, horror approach the one called Ned and take the Medley from him.

He gave her a grim look. "Take care of her if I don't come back, cousin."

"Hey, you better not die. You're one of the few male horrors left. We'll need you to help repopulate after this is over."she joked and situated the baby in a pouch at her ample chest.

He patted her on the shoulder. "Yeah. I might die on purpose now." They shared toothy grins then the female horror hurried away.

"They'll be safe back at the nest. Just focus on the mission now, Ned."Lindy said and looked down at Rachel. "What should we do about her?"

His yellow eyes turned quickly from somber to malicious. "This is his _'daughter'_, isn't it?"he asked.

Lindy quirked a perfectly arched brow. She knew what he was thinking. "So, an eye for an eye, huh?"

"No. I'll have to kill his _'son'_ too, then we'll be closer to even."he growled and snaked his long green and purple tail around the girl's ankle. He lifted her and she began crying. "Look at this spoiled little powder puff. Humans make me sick."

Lindy cleared her throat.

"I've changed my mind about your kind. After this is over, I'm banning all humans from Horrorland."he snarled and shook the upside down girl.

Lindy looked away in disgust. It wasn't as if he were a pleasure to be around either. "Whatever, let's just shut her up before someone hears."

"I'll be quiet! Please don't kill me! Please don't kill me! I'll be good!"Rachel pleaded in hysterics. The horror wrapped his large clawed and knuckled hand around her short neck. "No! No! No! No!"she cried.

"This is what he did to my children. You should suffer the same death they did."he hissed and tightened his grip. Her eyes widened and her face went red from the sudden force of blood into it.

A stream of pale gold suddenly streamed across his view of the girl. Familiar blue eyes and skin the color of moon glow clung to his arm. Her fragile, petite hands were trying futilely to pry his open.

"Please! Stop this!"Kris begged.

Ned was stunned. He had seen Kris before, from afar, but seeing her up close gave him pause and he released his grip. They looked the same, but this woman had a completely different air to her than Lindy.

Kris was quick to catch Rachel and lay her down on the floor. The fiery haired child turned and clung to her skirt, coughing and sobbing into her lap. "Take deep breaths, Rachel. You're okay." Kris petted the hysterical girl's head trying to get her to calm down.

"I'm sorry."Ned said and quickly unfurled his tail from the girl's ankle.

Kris didn't look at him. She kept her head bowed and spoke softly as she soothed Rachel,"Two wrongs don't make a right. I'm sorry about your family, but it wasn't her fault."

Lindy stared at her sister. It wasn't that she was surprised to see her, but that she had expected to feel differently when they were finally reunited. It didn't feel real for some reason. Maybe it just wasn't the reunion she had been expecting. "Kris, I came to save you. I've been looking everywhere for you since your were kidnapped. Aren't you happy to see me?"

Kris raised her head. The thought of seeing Lindy again had been one of the last things that kept her from giving up and just ending it all. She felt so happy when she saw her sister down the hall that she had been unable to speak, but then she watched her let an immense horror into Jackson's room. From there she had heard everything.  
They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder and she found it to be true. In the contrast of the abuse she suffered at their former nemesis's hand the past few weeks, she supposed it would make it easy to view Lindy with rose tinted memories.  
Kris couldn't find it in her to smile. The reality was that Lindy was still as two faced and cut throat as ever. "Of course I'm glad to see you. You're my sister. Thank you for coming to save me. I know it couldn't have been easy for you."she said almost mechanically.

Lindy had to refrain from rolling her eyes. She flipped her hair and sighed. "If you have a problem just say so, Kris. Don't tell me what you _think_ I want to hear." She had forgotten how annoyingly passive Kris was.

Kris ignored her sister's call out. "Are you okay, Rachel..?"Kris asked the now quieted girl. She only nodded in response.

"What do you want to do, Lindy?"Ned asked, gesturing a claw in the direction of the girls on the floor. "Do you want to escort them out and I can go find the dummy?"

Lindy looked from Kris to Rachel. "I guess I could meet up with you after they're safe."

"Alright, but don't take too long. I can't use the hex without you."

"I know."Lindy said with a wave of her hand.

Something didn't seem right. Kris looked to Ned. "What hex..?"

Lindy extended a helping hand down to her sister. "The hex to end Wally and Slappy."

Kris didn't know why she felt so disturbed. "What?"

"There's a lot you don't know about, sis."Lindy said cryptically.

Kris took Lindy's hand. She had a feeling here was a lot Lindy didn't know either.

* * *

**I decided to keep going. I'm ready to end this, yeah! Thanks again to all who comment/review. It means so much to me.**


	49. Chapter 49

The retched stench of rotted blood and fetid flesh assailed her nostrils the moment Molly took her first onto the top stair. She covered her mouth and gagged. "Oh my god.." She couldn't believe Lizzy was already down there and had been for a while. The flickering candle light that danced on the stairs insisted so. Molly moaned and steeled herself. "Maybe I'll stop smelling it after a minute or two..."she told herself and descended the stairs, being sure to shut the door behind her.

"Nope." Lizzy replied in a nasally voice. She painted the last of Ray's rancid blood on the cellar wall with a bundle of sage then tossed it aside. Turning to Molly, she produced a clothes pin from her pants pocket and held out to her.

Molly felt sick, not only from the smell, but from the vile decomposition that had become of Ray on the floor. She was careful to walk around the bone chalk markings Lizzy had constructed around his corpse and over the thick coagulated blood spread over the floor. Molly gratefully took the laundry pin and clasped it over her nose. She opened her mouth to say 'thank you' but her twisted into a grimace. "Oh god! I can taste it..!"she cried and fought the need to vomit.

Lizzy spit into the corner in response. "Yeah. Spitting kinda helps. Just don't do it on the magicked circle." she said and motioned to where Molly was to conduct the summoning spell.

Molly hopped over to her place. Lizzy stood across from her beside the singular candle illuminating the tiny room. She looked from the candle to her Wiccan book in her hand then back to Lizzy. "I'm ready if you are."

Lizzy laughed mirthlessly. "I am so ready to get out of here."

Molly held the manuscript to her breasts and closed her eyes. "Blow out the candle."

* * *

"_Was this a bad idea..?_" Slappy asked himself softly as he lay powerless, bathed in cold white light. Tall, twisted candles encircled him. A flame began to flicker, then with a hiss and wisp of smoke, it extinguished. His jaw dropped and he gave a tiny gasp. A profound feeling of loss chilled him to his core. "_No.._"he exhaled weakly. The candle that had housed the light quickly crumbled into sand.

His face turned slack into a dull stare. "What did I lose this time..?"he wondered aloud.

Losing the first three candles had caused him to panic and despair, but now an uncanny numbness was setting in. With every light extinguished, a piece of his soul disappeared along with his memory.

"This is happening so much faster than we thought...I have less than three hours at this rate." Slappy tried to will himself to move, but didn't have his usual stubborn resolve to give him the extra push he needed. That part of him was with Amy now.

Amy and ol' mean green. He had to hold out a little longer, but he didn't know how. Francesco was dangerous, narcissistic and, even worse, he had taken a special interest in Amy. His Amy...or was she their Amy..? Ol' green had a strong possessive streak and the words he spoke to Amy had bonded them, but he wasn't sure there was any real feeling other than that for her from him. He wondered what would become of them if he was lost. Would his other self relapse to who he was before their joining so long ago? He would. He'd return to being a pure demon again and drag Amy down to hell.

His chest lightened for a moment at the thought. It would be easy for him get her there. All he had to do was tell her there was all the fire she could ever want.

The lightness left him quickly. That was only a cartoon idea of hell. The real hell was cold. And lonely...even if you had quite a lot of company. Ol' green would do anything to stay out of it, too. He'd trade Amy in a second if he reverted.

The next light flickered.

He gasped. He had to slow the process. But how...? Maybe if he went over what he could remember..? Perhaps the harder he held to a memory, the more difficult it would become to burn it away. He sighed shallowly and focused his ultramarine gaze on the next candle and spoke aloud.

He began at the last person he saw.

"I still remember Amy. I still remember Jackson. I still remember Rachel. I still remember Francesco. I still remember Wally.. "he labeled them off. He would continue until he couldn't remember anyone else, then restart the list.

He had to hold on.

* * *

"Sorry!"Dennis called back to the old woman living puppet sprawled out on the ground behind him. He tried not to feel too guilty about it right now.

Dennis shook it off and darted forward, ahead of Brittany to intercept a gangling man-puppet. "Watch out Brit!"he called then tangled himself up in it's legs purposefully.

She shrieked and covered her eyes, quickly veering off the sidewalk to avoid the toppled assailant in her path and ran blindly right into another puppet.

"Brittany! Uncover your eyes! You gotta watch where you're going!"he chided her."We're almost there!" He disentangled himself from the downed puppet. His stomach bottom out when the puppet she bumped into wrapped it's arms around her. "NOO!"he screamed and lunged at the assailants.

_He couldn't let them take Brittany. Not like Amy._

He climbed up the living doll and onto it's shoulders. Not thinking, he grabbed tiny handfuls of the puppet's hair and twisted it's head to the side until he heard a loud click. He gasped and sat mortified for a second as glass eyes blinked at him. He had turned it's head completely around.

It dropped Brittany to reached up to fix it's head.

"Run, Brittany! Go!"he yelped and dropped from it's shoulders to the pavement. "The house is only a block away!"

"Dennis!"she wailed, damned near tears. "I love you so much, thank you, man!"she blathered in a full sprint.

"Fuck-!"he cursed under his breath. She sure could had freed her, but Brittany was now way ahead of him. He didn't want to tell her to slow down either..

There were so many puppets now. It was as if everyone in five square miles of the Molloy house had been transformed and now were converging on the last humans left.

A heart piercing shriek carried over the crowd. "Brittany!" He dashed through what was a forest of legs to him until he saw her. She had collapsed on the sidewalk in front of the Molloy house and was surrounded.  
"Get away! Get away from her!" he cried mournfully and threw his small body over hers. "Brittany please get up! It's only a few more steps! You can make it!"he cried as hands began pawing at the girl from every direction. He furiously started to slap them away. "No! Not this one! Stop it!" They pressed in further and Dennis found himself to be nothing more than an annoying inconvenience to them as they lifted the girl. "God-dammit! NO!" He clung to her, unwilling to be separated. "Why? Why am I so weak!? I can't do anything! Why am I not like Slappy!? Why don't I have any powers!?"

A tall puppet with a wiry red beard held Brittany up by her underarms like a small child. His glass eyes filled with a cold grey light that emanated from his throat as his mouth dropped open and a fog rolled out. The fog gushed and spread around her body like a spider encasing it's victim.

There was nothing he could do. Dennis hugged Brittany close and shut his eyes tightly. "_No...oh god, Brittany.._" he whispered in heartbreak. A cold clear liquid dripped down his cheeks. "I'm so sorry..."

All movement around him stopped. All was quiet.

Dennis opened his eyes. The puppets around him began to shiver as if they were cold. Their teeth chattered and their bodies stiffened.

"_What...?_"he said in confusion. It had become cold...and wet. He looked up but there were no clouds, but rain was falling in shimmering drops. Another splattered on his wooden face , the consistency was like that of a gel. "Uh...is this...hand sanitizer..?"he asked himself aloud. It couldn't be, because it lacked the astringent odor, it smelled more like vinegar. It turned into a drenching rain quickly and the condition of the puppets sped up sending them into a nutcracker like position.  
The living puppet dropped Brittany. She didn't fall far before being caught by a gelatinous blob. Dennis watched in wonder as it surrounded she and he up to their heads, then bubbled away back to the house. It was very cold in the goo, but as soon as they had made it back into the wards the blob deposited them onto the lawn and glooped up to the porch.

A tall woman with long wavey hair past her waist laced with braids and beads kneltdown onto one knee on the ruined porch. She set a large open mason jar on it's side and Dennis watched as the blob impossibly poured itself in the jar, fitting somehow. The woman hefted the large container up and settled it on her curvey hip that could rival Amy's, then screwed a lid on it. "Are you okay?"she called then trotted to Britanny and the dummy. Her sandals crunched in the frosted grass. Her many bracelets, bangles, and other jewlery jingled as she approached, then knelt over Brittany. "Oh man..she's out."

The woman was focued on Brittany , pushing her light copper hair from her dirtied face. He let loose of Brittany's jacket and sat up on top on her. "You helped us. Who are you?"he asked innocently. The woman stared at him wide eyed like she had never seen a sentient dummy before. Dennis instantly remembered himself and hi expresion mimiced hers, before she slapped him.

"It talked to me!"she shrieked as his head spun around.

Dennis wobbled on his knees, straddled over Brittany. The world spun and he quickly grasped his head stopping it straight ahead. "Please don't do that...! I didn't mean to startle you!"

"Brittany! Dennis!" Molly came running out of the house and dropped down beside them.

Brittany groaned pitifully and sceunched her body up to lay on her side, sending Dennis over. Molly caught him against her then petted her friend's shoulder as she moaned in discomfort. "Brittay it's okay. The spell worked. We're getting out of here."

"I made it back..?"Brittany whimpered.

The woman stood over and siddled Brittany's body."My pet, Pickles, saved you. You had collasped so I sent him to collect you." She dipped over and scooped a lean, strong arm around Brittany's midsection easily hoisting her up. "We still should go back to our shack. The totems you set up aren't going to last much longer." She grunted then she hauled the slack weight of the girl in one arm and the hearty mason jar in the other.

Molly scooped Dennis up in her arms and hurried after them. She wanted to ask how things had gone, but she already knew it hadn't, so she said the next thing that came to mind. "I'm glad you're both okay."

Dennis closed his eyes and covered his face with his hands. "Brittany would have died if it weren't for her. I'm sorry. I thought I could keep her safe, but I-" A warm kiss to his forehead stilled his words.

"I'm glad you're safe." Molly said then hurried through her house. She stopped where everyong had deposited their things in the hall. She set Dennis down and began collecting her bags and two of his.

"Molly, no. I can carry my own things, please.."

Molly gave him a level stare and addressed him sternly. "We don't have time for your hang-ups right now, Dennis. You are small and not very strong. It doesn't matter nor does it make you less of a man or person in general. Right now I need you to exercise your strengths and forget about your shortcomings, okay?"

His mouth hung open, dumbstuck and at an embarassing loss for words. He had just been put in his place by a sixteen year old. "I..okay. I'm sorry."

Molly helped him put on all his bags,"You're forgiven. Don't do it again."she said in her soft friendly voice.

When he had all his things settld on him Molly took his hand a they both walked to the laundry room together.

"Why are you putting that on your nose?"he asked as she placed a clothes pin on it.

"SarahBeth and Amanda haven't resurected Ray yet." she said and approached the narrow stair case in the floor.

"Ray's coming back!?" Dennis shouted hopfully.

Molly smiled and nodded at him. "Yep. Don't worry, things are going to be okay, Denny."

In that moment he believed her.


	50. Chapter 50

"Stop looking!" Grady rasped at Amy as he caught her staring again for the fifth time.

"I'm not-! I mean-"Amy looked back at the street, ashamed she'd been caught again. "I'm sorry...it's just that I didn't think it'd be so bouncy."

Grady flustered and frowned. He was feeling stronger now that he had a few minutes to let the transformation weariness wear off. "Well, cut it out. My eyes are up here."

Amy grinned at him impishly,"But they don't bounce."

"You're making me uncomfortable."

Amy smirked. "You nearly gnawed my legs off, so lets just call it tit for tat, okay?"

Grady blushed then directed his attention to the nearest building at the top of the alley. "This is my friend's place." Grady said then let go of Amy. He hobbled over to an old cottage. He tried the door knob, but it was locked.

"I got this." Amy moved Grady aside then took two steps back from the door. "Hoooya!"she exclaimed then kicked the door with her might. The door shuddered and a few splinters flaked from the grain, but it held steady. Amy growled at the door then kicked it again and again. "Don't worry! I'll get it, just gimme a minute!"she said optimistically.

"There's an extra key under the welcome mat."he said flatly.

Amy stopped abruptly with one leg in the air and hopped clumsily on the other. "That. is. good. to. knooow.."she said in sing-song before righting herself. She retrieved the key from a well chewed rather cheerful looking door mat she hadn't noticed before. The key was large and heavy in her hand, quite an antique looking thing that she had to put some force behind to turn in the lock once she wriggled it in. The door clanged and she pushed the it open. She smiled broadly at Grady and gestured him in. "Open sesame, dear master."she joked. Amy's smile quickly evaporated. "Oh no."

"What is it?"he asked.

"Slappy." She only spoke his name as some kind of acceptable answer. "Grady, I gotta go."

He supposed their meeting should have an equally abrupt end. "It was nice meeting you, er..I mean-"

Amy laughed. "Besides the human chew toy parts, I'm happy I got to meet you too."

Without warning, Grady snatched Amy to him giving her and almost crushing hug. He roughly nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck.

Amy hugged him back. "Hang in there, man."

Grady pressed himself flush to her, leaving no space between them, groping her body to his and making low growling sounds.

Amy's eyes were wide and her body stiffened in surprise. "DUDE. WHAT THE FUCK." She started getting pissed after his fine grit jawline scraped against her cheek a few times. Amy snarled at him and clawed into his sides making him cringe. "LET GO GRADY."she growled.

Grady let out a whimper before releasing her. She pushed him away and gave him a withering look. He grinned sheepishly at her. "I needed to get your scent."

Amy scowled at him and rubbed her cheek. "You've got my shirt for that."

"But now you have my scent on you."he said and staggered as coordinately as he could into his friend's house. "It could possibly be of help to you."

Amy eyed him and wanted to say something, but she didn't have time to argue the logistics of being a werewolf. "Okay, whatever... I'll see ya round'."she said sourly.

"Wait!" he called to her.

Amy stopped in the doorway. "What?"

His eyes glimmered orange in the dark. "Don't look at the moon. Not even reflections or it'll turn you."

"WAIT.. WHAT?" Amy stared at him bewildered, then she remembered. She glanced down at her legs. "Oh...right."

Grady collapsed onto a big brown couch inside.

She grumbled a _'thanks a lot'_ under her breath then gave him a tiny wave. "Smell ya later, Grady."she said not able to come up with anything better then left the house in a jog.

* * *

The great doors to the Stagger Inn blew open dramatically. "Honey! I'm home!" Francesco shouted playfully as he strode in.

He did love making an entrance.

What he didn't like were unwelcome surprises.

Two sets of wide china blue eyes stared at him from the grand staircase.

For a moment he almost believed that Kris had come to meet him at the door.

A sprawling fake smile pulled across his face did little to mask his true demeanor. "Kris..."he questioned after a long pause. "What is this? What are you doing?"

The girls stood frozen, huddled together on the stairs. Kris stood beside Lindy and had a death grip on her sister's wrist.

Lindy quickly pried Kris' hand from her wrist roughly then firmly directed her behind her, taking a step down the stairs. "Good to see you again, Wally."

The doors slowly shut themselves behind him as he took three deliberately heavy steps forward. "I wish I could say the same, Lindy, but you've caught me by surprise." His red eyes shifted left to right, inspecting the lobby for any other unexpected guests. "How did you get in here.."he stated more than asked.

Lindy gave him a superior smirk. "I let myself in."

"Did you now?" His eyes narrowed.

Kris tugged on her sister's sleeve,"That isn't Wally."she whispered. "Not anymore."

Lindy glanced at her Kris's hand then back to the slender red head at the foot of the stairs. "What?"

Francesco slipped his bloodied hands in his pockets. "There's still a little of him left in here. Come closer and I bet you can see a little glimmer in my left eye..."he dared her.

"I wanna go home, Uncle Wally!"Rachel shrieked from behind Kris.

Francesco expression turned to genuine surprise. "Strawberry...?" He could barely see her peeking out from behind Kris's dress, clinging to his disobedient pet like a child half her age. "I didn't see you there. What..are you..."he asked then frowned,"..are you trying to leave too?"

Rachel whimpered and sniffled. For only an instant she thought she saw Wally in the hurt look Francesco was giving her. "I just want to go home!"she blurted out.

Francesco grit his teeth and snarled. "You are home!" He pointed up the stairs. "Go back to your rooms and I can forgive you for all this idiotic 'leaving' business!"

Rachel buried her face in Kris's back. "_I wanna go home.._"she sobbed quietly.

Francesco sneered at the girls, then looked specifically at Lindy. "Lindy is welcome to stay, of course." He started up the stairs in stride and his lips curled into a sadistic grin,"..but she's old enough to _earn_ her keep like her sister."

Lindy dashed down the stairs at him and in a blur produced a small spray canister from a holster hidden up her right sleeve. "Get away from me you parasite!"she screamed in disgust and sprayed him.

Francesco threw his arms up as a shield and shut his eyes tightly to avoid getting what he thought was pepper spray in his eyes. "YOU BIT- GYAAAAAHHHHH!"

Lindy ended her assault and ran back up the stairs. "Run! Back upstairs!"

Kris covered her mouth in shock. Francesco screamed and writhed as his flesh bubbled and steamed, causing him to lose his balance and fall down the stairs.

"KRIS RUN!"Lindy snapped at her furiously.

She tore her eyes away from her fallen torturer then darted up the stairs in a flurry, dragging Rachel behind her.

"Is there another way out?" Lindy asked from ahead of them.

"Yes!"Kris yelped then ran faster than her sister for the first time in her life. "Follow me!"

* * *

Francesco held his face, staggering down the halls of the renovated old castle. He became more enraged with each step. "KRIS!? WHERE ARE YOU!?"he shrieked in rage and pain.

His face and hands seared with pain. The flesh had been scalded off from the spray of holy wine. He huffed and gulped air into his lungs as he decided what to do. A thin sweat cover4ed his body and he felt shaky. "FORGET IT."he growled and turned back down the hall to the elevator. "I fucked around with this bullshit long enough." He took a skeleton key from his pocket and slipped it into the panel that held all the floor buttons. Francesco turned it left then quickly entered a four digit code. The doors shut and the elevator cabin shuddered before it descended. "I hate women."he seethed in the dim light. Thirty seconds passed and the elevator went still. Francesco removed the key and slipped it in his slacks pocket just as the door opened.

He was greeted by deep darkness and the wailing screams of thousands of voices.

* * *

"That's impressive for your first spell." the woman with long wavy hair the color of red wine said as she closed the doorway to the Molloy home that had manifested in her bathroom.

"Thank you so much for saving us. We would have died there without your hospitality."Molly said hugging her arms to herself.

The tall fair woman was dressed in a long black velvet dress that hung perfectly on her body, that was as sultry as her voice. "Well, I suppose you should thank Amanda, really."she said and turned around. Her dark purple eyes fixated on the trail of liquid demise that had been left on the marble floor and lead out onto her antique hardwood floors in the hall. "I know I certainly will, seeing as this is technically her doing."

"Well, the spell was actually Lizzy's idea..."Molly said then blushed. She hadn't thought how saying that might come across as throwing Lizzy under the bus.

"Oh..really?"she said passively then lifted her skirt up to her ankles before exiting the bathroom. "I still suppose that demon was bound to show up eventually."

Molloy followed her, carefully avoiding the mess on the floor. "Pardon? Are you talking about Ray? Do you know him?"

"No. Not really. I only sort of met him once before."

"Oh.."Molly said and decided not to pry further. "SaraBeth..? Will she really be able to bring him back?"

SaraBeth shrugged her bare angular shoulders. "Amanda is the only one that can. She's his keeper." She escorted Molly through her home and down a spiral staircase to her shop at ground level, then down a hidden passage behind the counter into their own hidden cellar.

Amanda, Brittany, Lizzy, and Dennis all stood around Ray's corpse.

Mr. Molloy and Margo were absent.

They had gone to the hospital together. Lizzy had objected to Margo leaving, but in the end she couldn't stop her. If the police picked her up, that was that. But then again, who would be looking for her in New Orleans?

"Do you mind us staying to watch?" Dennis asked Amanda. "He was our friend, we'd really like to be here when he wakes up."

Amanda gave the dummy a startled look. "Really?"she asked then cut the side of her right hand with a thin short blade over a tarnished silver cup. "The little prick only ever tried to kill me and my family..."

Dennis, Brittany, Molly, and Lizzy all looked stunned.

Brittany's eyes bugged out. "_Ray?_ Are you sure _Ray_ did that?"

SaraBeth's giggle echoed in the wide under ground room.

Amanda's mouth made a thin line and she stared flatly at the copper haired girl. "Yeah. I'm sure."

The three friends all looked down at the stinking mess that used to be Ray.

Dennis held up his small wooden hand. "Wait." He narrowed his eyes at Amanda. "Why are you bringing him back then?"

Amanda rolled her eyes at Dennis in annoyance. She turned and set the tarnished cup on an ebony altar then bandaged her hand. "I have personal reasons for bringing him back. You're welcome to stay if you want, but if you're going to be disruptive then leave."

Dennis looked to Lizzy. She shook her head and shrugged. Dennis sighed and stepped away from the sigil circle on the floor.

"Alright then." SaraBeth purred. "Let's turn down the lights and watch the show, shall we?" She sauntered around the dirt cellar snuffing out candles set in dug out alcoves in the dirt wall.

Dennis, Molly and Lizzy all gravitated to each other as it became darker. They stood together close to the heavy wooden cellar door as the last flame was left ablaze.

SaraBeth prowled up behind Amanda silently. "All yours."

Amanda took the cup and turned back around. She dipped her finger tips in her own blood then stepped over Ray's body. She sprinkled it over him and with bare feet walked in the cold ooze that ran from his remains. She circled him mumbling an old english spell under her breath as she anointed the body. when she reached his crown once again she took the remaining blood and poured it into the blackened gaping mouth without lips. She leaned in closer and spoke a loud. "Wake up, Ray. Your Keeper has need of you." Amanda waited a beat then backed away swiftly, leaving black foot prints outside the sigil circle.

The corpse moved. It jerked then the ribs rose and fell three times before going still again.

They waited and nothing happened.

Dennis held Molly's hand. She looked down at him and could see the disappointment in his eyes. She gave him a sad smile.

The sound of ripping jolted everyone to attention. Lizzy yelped as the white hands shot out from the ribs of the corpse, spreading them open. They all watched as Ray climbed out of the gore.

After a struggle, Ray rose out of the putrid refuse that had been his flesh. His old body fell away like ash and he stood nude, in his new body of alabaster and gold. Gold twirls and rivulets of silken hair fell over broad shoulders, then rested in a river between his blades. His pale skin appeared to glow in the soft candle light, giving him the look of an angel.

Amanda gawked at him. This was not the body of the teenage boy she had met years ago.

Ray lifted and curled his new arms, testing the strong sinew and muscles bequeathed to him. He looked himself over then turned around and stared at Amanda in shock.

Red eyes locked with amber.

_Amanda._

She was older, taller, and even more beautiful than he could have imagined, bathed in candle light. He opened his mouth to say her name but his first breath in this body filled him with the smell of her, the taste of her, the_ feeling of her_ in his blood stream where Amy had once been. Amanda's presence blazed through him like a fire trapped in his bones. Ray breathed deeply savoring the thrill that filled him. "Aman-"

**_ SMACK!_**

"YOU ATE MY DOG!"Amanda yelled at Ray, her hand still in the air after slapping him.

Ray's mouth hung open and her cowered away from her with his hand to his tingling cheek. "No I didn't! That was Karen, I swear!"he retorted in a hurt voice.

"It's still your fault!"she yelled and started slapping his arms. "You jerk! You were supposed to be my friend! I liked you!"

Ray backed away from her, scrunching up as she assailed him with a flurry of slaps. His old body wafted around his ankles as ashes that evaporated into nothing as they dispersed. "Amanda! I'm sorry! What I did was wrong, I understand that now, please! I liked you too!"

"Sorry isn't going to bring back my dog or my childhood! I still have nightmares, Ray!"

"HEY!" Ray roared at her, his voice making dirt rain from the ceiling. "Well the past few years haven't exactly been great for me either!"

Amanda laughed ironically. "No, you just been gallivanting around with these 'friends' of yours doing whatever you people do!"

Ray "I've been DEAD. I've been a goddamned ghost, in that goddamned house, this whole goddamned time! Up until a few weeks ago I have been utterly ALONE." "And I know that is exactly what I deserved. Amanda..I am truly sorry."

Amanda glared at him with the resentment bottled up over the years. "I don't give a rat's ass. I will never forgive you, because you really _REALLY_ don't deserve it and I HATE YOU." Amanda turned on her heel and stormed out of the cellar, her long wrap skirt swishing angrily behind her.

* * *

**Thank you so much for your patience. I know these take forever to post. **

**And a special thank you to those who review! THANK YOU! SO MUCH! **

**YOU GIVE ME LIFE. :[**


	51. Chapter 51

Dirty,scrapped hands grasped onto ragged portion of stone wall, and with their small, determined strength they lolled it aside. Amy grunted and huffed as she watched the debris rumble down. "Where are you, ya fuckin' marble!?"she surled.

There was no way she would make Frank's deadline at this rate. Not that she felt any real nagging concern about it. It was more of an annoying foreboding in the backseat of her mind. Right now, her sole focus was to be reunited with the demon eye. "Slappy!?"she called clamoring down the loose pile of the debris blocking the path to the bat barns and Vampire Village. With her head bowed, she searched the ground. Amy proceeded into the gathering gloom. "Slaaappy!?"she called.

She wondered how far he could have rolled on his own. She searched for any glint of florescent green or holes he could have fallen into. Soon, the cobble stone street turned into a worn dirt path beneath her feet. Amy slowed her pace for a moment to glanced up.  
Aged trees whos gnarled limbs reached above her and across to the other side. Their branches tangled, snagged, and intertwined into a dense, leafless canopy that choked out the already diminishing afternoon light. Her eyes strained at the differing light through the black branches. She halted, turning her attentions back to the ground, calling his name one more time. All her senses searched for any sign of him, only to be alarmed by a shock or red.  
Just ahead on the path, was a withered arm jutting out from behind a tree. Amy nerved herself. She gently rubbed the old injury on her shoulder nervously then meandered closer.  
"Hello...?"she called to the stationary arm. A long drip of gelatinous flesh dropped from it's elbow as the rest of the creature came into view.  
"Ew..oh that's nasty..."she grimaced and covered her nose. What came into view was something she wasn't entirely sure could have been human once. There was only half of it and it was tied with rusted wire to a rotting wood post by it's severed spinal cord. A 'Bat Barns' sign was captured against it's decomposing rib cage as the arm she had spotted pointed rigidly in an assumed direction. Amy choked at the smell it gave off. Rot and cheap perfume made from funeral flowers. "Wow..must suck to be you."she said as she passed by, but stopped at a thought and turned back around.

"You wouldn't have happened to have seen an angry green marble roll by here would ya?"she queried.

The dull glowing red embers, set in the deep dark eye sockets, stared through her.  
Amy felt silly for asking.  
The embers blinked.  
Amy's eyes widened a little as the sign's extended arm slowly turn it's directing finger to to a dark huddle of trees along the path.  
"Oh...thanks!"she chipped with genuine gratitude.  
The sign monster's jaw slacked open then burped in response.  
Amy gave a husky laugh and waved to it before jogging away.

She approached the trees. In the center was a large trash can snared within their roots. "Oh yeah. He would be in the trash." she commented. Amy opened the lid and saw nothing but blackness. She replaced the lid then looked around the base of the can. "Slappy? You here?" She dropped to her hands and knees and felt around on the crisp yellowed grass for him. A warm draft of air happened to blow across her hand from the raised roots. She laid her body flat to the ground and looked within. Amy strained her eyes and detected a faint glow emanating from the hole. "Slappy!?"she yelled with her hands cupped around her mouth into the small opening. "Are you down there!? It's me! Amy!"

She waited. and listened closely. She could hear something,but couldn't make out what it was. A sort of _crackling.._? Amy cupped her hands to her mouth again,"SLAPPY!"she yelled more angrily. "Are you down there or not!?"

"GODDAMMIT AMY! YES! YES, I'M DOWN HERE NOW COME GET ME!"Slappy's shrieking voice echoed from the hole.

Amy's heart leaped with excitement. "Hold on! I'll dig you out!"

"No you idiot! Get in the trash can!"he yelled.

Amy jumped to her feet and took the metal lid off the can. "Just jump in?"she asked loudly.

A horrified scream echoed from the metal can.

"Okay! I guess so!"she yelped as she clamored in the can and realized that it was bottomless. Amy fell through, landing onto a cold rough stone decline. She slid down until she was vomited onto the floor of a room filled with warm firelight. She cursed and rubbed her injuries gingerly as she righted herself. After a moment of recovery she found herself in a clostrophobes nightmare. The ceiling was only an inch above her head and there wasn't much room the her side either, if you didn't count what was beyond the metal grate to her right.  
Amy squinted and looked around in the new lighting. It looked like she was in some kind of sandstone subterranean maze. She glanced to her left and there was an odd round Aztec looking wheel.

"What are you waiting for, Slave!?"Slappy screeched.

Amys gasped and grasped the iron bars. "Slappy!?" His bright green eye rolled in the frenzy away from a scuttling head crab-like monstrosity down an adjacent, gated, path. "Slappy! I'm here! Roll to me!"she yelled excitedly to him.

"You have to open the gate, slave! I can only roll in this form! There's no way for me to jump the bottom rail!"he shrieked as the slobbering beast behind him came closer.

Amy's hands quickly fumbled to find a latch on the gate. "How!?"

"It's on the thing behind you!"he screamed and dodged a long claw aimed to shovel him into it's horrible lip less mouth.

Amy twisted to her right and spotted a little shift at the bottom of the gate. She yanked it twice in one direction, but got no reaction, the shoved it the opposite way. The gate opened eagerly for her. Amy crawled out on her hands and knees. "I got it! Come on!"she yelled excitedly, but she couldn't see him any more.

Amy's face fell. "Slap..?"

_"NOOOO! SLAAAVE! SAVE ME!"_he screeched.

Amy's body perked up and she clambered on all fours in the direction of his voice. "I'm coming! Hold on!" Her movements, graceless at first, turned fluid and she bolted down the narrow corridors and took the turns in hairpin precision. Her eyes locked onto the beast at the end of maze, it unaware of her closing in upon it. The beast stabbed it's long clawed legs fervently trying to impale Slappy. Amy snarled and charged the creature before it even realized it was being hunted.

Squeals and bestial guttering filled the labyrinth as teeth flashed and fists flew. The flurry of adrenaline coursing through Amy clouded her vision and thought. She could later only describe it as a 'white-out' as she held no memory of the fight, but when she came back the herself, the creature was dragging itself away. Amy had her body poised in a protective cat-like arch over the little green eyeball. She let out a noise like a pterodactyl screech after the crawler. Then maze fell silent. Only ambient sounds of unseen fire crackled and popped along with a soft whimpering, that faded the further away the maze beast crawled.

Amy's body relaxed. Her spine softened and her nails released from the grout lines on the stone floor. She rested her knees to the ground, relieving her tippy toes from their gaunt pressure. With the danger gone, Amy looked beneath her at her prize.

He gazed up at her silently. He had a thin hairline fracture streaked across his iris. "What took you so long? I got hurt."

Amy sighed and rolled her eyes. "Oh hush up. I got here as fast as I could. Besides.."she gently scooped him up and deposited him carefully back in her cleavage. "You're fine. That thing would never have eaten something as sour as you."

He grumbled indiscernible as she began to slink on all fours back the way she had come. It was clear to him that she was heavily infected by the werewolf bite. "That werewolf that attacked you was an Alpha. It's bite is more potent and needs to be cured quickly, before it becomes permanent."

Amy gave a quirked smile. "Really?"

"No. I'm just wasting my breath because I enjoy our conversations."he hissed.

"I didn't think Grady would be an 'Alpha'.."she snickered. "Not the human him, anyway." They turned a corner and at the other end of the tunnel a pair of crawler beasts stared back at them. Amy growled and they scuttled away quickly, dragging the wounded crawler with them. "What the hell are those things?"she asked Slappy.

He paused. "They eat all the garbage that park goers throw away."

Amy snorted. "Haha, and they were after YOU."

* * *

**Sorry for the long hiatus. **


End file.
